Monster
by TheFrogFromHell
Summary: Previously titled "HOUSE OF STAIRS". RE-REVISED! Sequel to "HUMAN". Mewtwo/Misty. Longer summary inside.
1. Birthday

SUMMARY: It has been eight years since Misty and Mewtwo met and fell in love with each other on the island. Lonely and confused, Misty agreed to marry Ash despite the ambiguity of her feelings towards him. Soon afterwards, she discovered she was pregnant. The two are now raising a seven-year-old daughter together. However, unbeknownst to Ash, the identity of the child's father is in question. In the second installment of this saga, the truth will be revealed through several unique perspectives. Discover the true lineage of Misty's daughter, as well as the hidden motivations behind a mysterious Team Rocket plot that threatens Misty, Mewtwo, and the world.

Author's Note: This is the second installment in this trilogy. Enjoy, and, as always, make sure to leave a REVIEW!

~TheFrogFromHell

**Chapter 1**

"_We cannot live like this forever. You are a human. I am a pokemon. It is wrong, and both of us know it. It is time for you to go. I will be leaving this place shortly." _

_"Why does it have to be this way? You did it before. Become human. Can't you try again?"_

"_I would never willfully reduce myself to the form of such a disgusting creature again. I despise humans. I cannot believe I spent the last two months so close to one, but I never plan to again. I am relocating far, far away, to a place with no humans at all, and there I shall remain."_

_The violet in his eyes became a vivid, translucent blue glow, and it grew increasingly brighter and brighter, overwhelming Misty's vision and blinding her to everything but the vibrant sapphire light._

_Then, there was a noise, like a siren. It began softly, but quickly reached an unbearable volume…_

Misty awoke with a jolt. Her heart pounded when she realized that the noise— the harsh, awful shrieking— was still going on!

She let out a sigh of relief when she identified the source. _My new alarm, _she realized sheepishly. She had just found out the hard way that its tone wasn't a very… _gentle_ way of beginning her morning.

_I haven't had that dream for a long time,_ Misty thought, _for a while, there… I thought I was over it._

When she had first returned from New Island, Misty had dreamed of Mewtwo almost every night. She supposed that was what happened when you spent every waking hour of your life with someone for two months, and then said someone decides to arbitrarily abandon you one day with almost no explanation.

But she didn't want to think about that now. Today was supposed to be a happy day.

Today was Misty's twenty-fourth birthday.

Yawning and reluctantly sitting up in her bed, Misty quickly switched off the shrieking alarm. 6:03 am. She looked beside her and noticed that Ash was already gone, as usual. He'd left his side of the bed unmade, and there was a small dip in his pillow where his head had rested hours earlier. Misty sometimes felt sorry for Ash— they lived a few hours away from the Pokemon League, so he had to wake up ridiculously early every morning to fly to Indigo Plateau on his pidgeot's back. Misty always thought it would make more sense for Ash to stay at the Plateau housing with the other members of the Elite Four, but he always said he loved Misty too much to live away from her.

Yes, her husband was now one of the Elite Four. So far, he was undefeated.

Misty swung her legs to the side of the king sized bed, stood up, and went over to her closet to dress herself. Studying her reflection in the mirrored closet doors, she frowned. _I can't believe I'm already twenty-four, _she thought, _it seemed like just yesterday I was turning sixteen, leaving Cerulean gym to go on my pokemon journey!_

Misty wasn't entirely displeased with her appearance. Her face was youthful, and her hair was still bouncy, thick, and vibrant red, and in the past couple of years she'd decided to start leaving it down— she thought that look was a bit more mature than her signature side ponytail.

However, she had gained a little weight during her pregnancy, and the stubborn pounds still remained on her small frame seven years after her daughter, Cameron's, birth. Of course, she wasn't fat by any standards but her own; the slim figure of her youth had simply filled out a little. _Today's no day to start a diet anyway, _Misty decided, _not with all the birthday cake I'm going to eat!_

Misty had several outfits suitable for her job, which was teaching water pokemon training classes at Pokemon Technical Institute. Because it was her birthday, Misty chose the brightest, and prettiest, outfit she owned— a silky, rose-colored blouse and a pristine white skirt.

After she dressed herself in her work clothes and made the bed, Misty exited her bedroom and crossed the hall to enter her daughter's room. She quietly opened Cameron's door and called to her calmly, "Good morning, Cammie! It's time to wake up, sweetheart."

The small girl rolled over and groaned. _Even though she's only seven, she sure sleeps like a teenager,_ Misty noted.

Misty made her voice slightly more demanding when she added, "I'm going to have your breakfast ready in fifteen minutes. You need to be downstairs, dressed, and ready for school by then, okay?"

"Okay," Cameron grumbled. Misty closed the door and went downstairs to the kitchen, turning on the coffee maker and heating up some water to make hot cereal for herself and her daughter.

On the dining room table, there were two tiny packages, and two envelopes addressed "Misty". She smiled. _They must be birthday presents from Ash_, she figured.

She picked up the envelope on the top and opened it. It contained a colorful birthday card with an exaggerated cartoon horsea on the front that made Misty laugh. Inside the card, she found a message from Ash, chuckling a little at how mismatched her husband's messy scrawl was with the card's neat, printed calligraphy.

_Dear Misty, _it read,_ I love you! Happy birthday and anniversary. You can open the red box this morning, but save the blue one for when we celebrate our SEVENTH YEAR on Wednesday night. __ Love, Ash_

_That's so sweet,_ Misty thought, opening the small red package. Inside was a pink, velvet box that could only serve one purpose: to hold a ring.

Misty gasped when she saw the exquisite piece of jewelry inside— a white gold band with an enormous amethyst stone set in it. _My birthstone,_ she thought. However, something about the stone's vivid purple hue was unsettling to Misty. _Mewtwo's eyes, in my dream, were the same color, _she realized.

"Mom?"

Misty jumped in shock at the unexpected voice, and looked up to see her daughter, who had seemed to appear out of thin air in the doorway of the kitchen.

"Oh, good morning, honey," Misty said, calming herself down.

"Mom… the hot water…"

Misty whirled around and shrieked, quickly turning the fire down to stop the pot on the stovetop from boiling over. She stirred the uncooked oats into the hot, bubbling water and glanced over her shoulder at her daughter.

"Thanks, Cameron," Misty said, smiling at her. Cameron nodded, but she was distracted, studying the little present boxes on the table.

"Happy birthday, Mom," she said.

"Thanks," Misty began chopping fresh strawberries for them to have in their oatmeal. "Ouch!" she yelped as she nicked her finger with the knife, just deep enough to make it bleed a little.

"Rats," Misty commented, frowning.

Cameron turned to her mother, suddenly interested.

"Let me see," the girl said, and Misty held out her finger. Cameron stared at it intensely, and Misty gasped as she felt a strange, tingling sensation where she had just cut herself. It lasted a few seconds, and then stopped abruptly.

"All done," Cameron said, beaming. Misty looked at her finger in disbelief; there was no longer any sign of a mark or cut. Then, she realized what had happened. _Oh, brother, _Misty thought. She had just had this conversation with her daughter yesterday…

Misty gave her a stern look.

"Cameron… I told you not to do things like that. It's dangerous. What if someone found out about your secret?"

"I'm sorry, Mommy… I was just trying to help…"

Misty studied her daughter, who was looking up at her with a guilty expression on her face.

Cameron had Ash's hair— it was dark and wild, and Misty had tried many times, unsuccessfully, to comb it into submission.

She had Ash's stature and Misty's bone structure; she was a short and slight child, far below average size for her age.

But she had eyes that didn't resemble those of Ash, or Misty.

They were the same violet eyes that Misty had dreamed of the night before.

….

It had been over seven years since anyone had visited New Island. There was no longer any electricity in the building that stood there, since the one who was in control of that was long gone. A large group of people, their black clothes blending in with the darkness around them, shone lights all around inside the structure, which was so rundown now that it resembled a cave. The roof had partially collapsed at some point, blocking off the top of the large spiral platform and completely destroying the upper levels of the building.

As Giovanni led the way, his team of Rockets followed him. They split up and searched for over an hour, but they didn't find anything.

"Master… this is _boring_," an obnoxious female voice whined, "Why did you make us come to this dingy, disgusting place anyway?"

"Be quiet. You are not in a position to question what I do. I suggest you shut your mouth if you know what's best for you."

"Humph! Fine," Domino pouted.

"Master! Look at this!" A male voice called. Giovanni quickly made his way over to the man. He was pointing to a large, brown splotch on the floor. It appeared ancient. Giovanni kneeled down and touched the stain, then brought his fingers to his nose.

"Blood…" Giovanni reported, "Pokemon blood."

"Eww! Gross!" Domino said, "What could you possibly want with that?"

"Shut your mouth, imbecile!" he snapped. "This… this is not from any ordinary pokemon…" Giovanni moved intently in one direction, shining his flashlight. "Look, there!" he said, noticing another stain on a piece of rubble. He continued moving forward, and spotted several more blotches, becoming more and more frequent as he went on.

The party then arrived at a corner. It appeared they had reached a dead end, but Giovanni noticed a thin crack in the wall— the edge of a door! He tried to pry it open himself, but alone he was too weak. He looked back at his team, standing there watching him.

"You fools, get this door open!"

"Yes, master!" The voices replied earnestly. Together, they pushed and pulled as hard as they could until it was finally forced ajar. Then, they marveled at what they found inside.


	2. SNAP!

**Chapter 2**

_I hate math homework,_ Cameron thought, studying the sea of black numbers printed on the white piece of paper as if searching for some kind of secret code hidden in their arrangement.

**8 x 2= _?**

**10 + 5= _?**

**4 + ? = 12 **

Looking at the thirty-two problems on the page, Cameron knew each solution in her head almost instantly. In fact, if someone were to quickly remove the page from her sight and ask her what the problems had been, she could repeat back each question and its respective answer in order without skipping a beat.

But taking the time to fill them all in with a pencil and "showing her work" at each step just took too long. _What a waste of time,_ she thought, annoyed, _I'm not doing this._

Her teacher wouldn't care; he thought Cameron walked on water. He was always raving about how "gifted" she was. And even if he did happen to ask her where her assignment was, she could always… _convince _him to let it go.

Cameron had a way with people. She always knew how to get inside their heads.

Literally.

Turning on her computer, Cameron decided to research pokemon on the internet. She had always been fascinated by the creatures, and they had always seemed to be oddly drawn to her as well. She figured it was because she was the only human she knew of who was able to communicate with them.

Cameron liked all types of pokemon, but her favorites were the ultra powerful ones. Dragon types, psychic types, and, of course, the legendaries always interested her. And Cameron had a lot of knowledge about them, both from her own research and from living with her mother and father. She was proud to be the only seven-year-old in her class that had actually attended a pokemon league battle, thanks to her dad. She just wished she could start her pokemon journey already, but her parents were forcing her to wait until she was older. Cameron had engaged in many heated arguments with her mother and father regarding the subject over the years.

She clicked on a link, and, suddenly, something caught Cameron's eye: an article about cloned pokemon.

She quickly discovered that the article was almost ten years old. It had a tiny section with a cave drawing of a catlike pokemon, and next to it was a more detailed sketch of a larger pokemon that appeared similar, but not the same.

The captions read "Mew" and "Mewtwo".

Cameron had never heard of these pokemon before. Mew's picture was just a crude carving, almost like a hieroglyphic, but the depiction of Mewtwo was meticulous and scientific. It was as if someone who had actually seen the pokemon created that drawing.

Cameron made an irritated noise when she heard a knock on her door. She didn't like it when people interrupted her while she was reading; it broke her concentration, and she always found it difficult to get focused again.

Her father, Ash, opened the door, shooting her a stern look when he saw she was on the computer.

"Cameron," he said disapprovingly, "I told you, homework first. Then computer. You need to be all done with your math by the time your mother comes home so we can celebrate her birthday."

"I _am_ done with my math. I solved all the problems," Cameron replied innocently.

Ash looked skeptical. "Let me see them," he demanded.

Cameron looked up from her computer and stared straight into her father's eyes, concentrating.

"I _said,_ I was finished," she stated firmly.

A look of bewilderment came over Ash's face for a moment. He paused, but then replied, "Okay. Great."

Cameron smirked. She may not be able to use her secret around her mother, since she'd get in trouble, but she'd discovered long ago that her father was totally clueless.

...

Finishing up her workday at Pokemon Tech, Misty glanced at her classroom clock and flipped. _Shoot, it's already almost five. I was supposed to be home by now! I'm late for my own birthday party… _Her students had left over an hour ago, but Misty had decided to stay for a while longer to prepare for tomorrow's lecture.

She sighed. It seemed like she was away from her family much too often. She frequently worried about her daughter. Misty had always tried to convince Cameron to keep her special abilities a secret, but she didn't always seem to be able to control them. Misty shuddered to think what would happen if word got out that Cameron was different.

To this day, Misty felt horribly guilty about Cameron's… situation, but she didn't know what to do about it. She wanted to be honest with Ash about their daughter, but she was worried that trying to explain everything would be too traumatic, both for her husband and for Cameron.

Misty still remembered the fateful day, almost eight years ago now, that she realized she was pregnant. Although she felt a little guilty for this too, mostly she had been horrified. She had only been dating Ash for a couple months, so Misty had immediately found it doubtful that the baby was his. For one thing, the two of them had not been intimate on very many occasions at that point, and they had used protection each time. Also, when Misty had her doctor's appointment after the discovery, the doctor had told her she was already over two months along (Misty, of course, had concealed this fact from Ash, justifying the two month discrepancy by explaining to him that Cameron was born prematurely). However, the information Misty received from the doctor could only mean one thing: Cameron was definitely not Ash's daughter.

She was Mewtwo's, and she had been conceived on New Island.

Although Misty was mostly terrified, there was a part of her— a tiny, twisted, bizarre part of her— that was happy the baby wasn't Ash's. Underneath her anguish, there was pride that she was carrying Mewtwo's child. Strangely, even after the way he had treated Misty, there was a piece of her that was still in love with him.

But that tiny piece was not enough to console the rest of her. It had been Christmastime when they discovered her pregnancy, and Ash had fondly referred to the baby as "our Christmas surprise". Misty, however, did not view the baby as a gift. While Ash was excitedly making plans for its arrival, Misty was wondering if the baby would even be human.

She spoke to Ash about abortion, bringing up that they were still in their teens and not ready to raise a child, although she knew this was only an excuse. However, Ash wouldn't hear of it. Although he had his reservations as well, Misty could tell he was mostly overjoyed just to have a child with her.

She and Ash were married in February, just after her seventeenth birthday.

Ash had been beaming, handsome and grown up in his tuxedo that matched Misty's dress.

But even at their wedding, Misty had not been able to still her thoughts about the thing growing inside her. In their wedding photos, Misty's forced smile and dark, uncertain eyes were obvious, at least to her.

A sense of immense relief washed over Misty the day of her daughter's birth. The baby was normal. It had been Ash's idea to name her Cameron, and Misty loved it. For the first few weeks, everything was perfect— they had a baby girl, with Ash's likeness. Misty was even able to delude herself temporarily; Cameron looked so much like Ash that she could almost lead herself to believe that the baby really was Ash's child.

Until Cameron's eyes began to change from blue to violet.

Unexplainable events, such as books and toys flying across the room by themselves, occurred.

Misty's worst fears had manifested.

Terrified, Misty had tried to keep the baby from Ash as much as possible. Soon after Cameron's birth, Ash became the Pokemon League Champion, so he wasn't around as much, and that helped.

There were certain nuances that occurred while Ash was home, but, somehow, Misty was able to explain them away. She had been successful to this day, and Ash had no idea that their daughter was "special".

He simply believed Cameron was intelligent and talented, and he boasted incessantly about how her teachers claimed she was so gifted.

But Misty knew the truth, and, as Cameron got older, her abilities were only growing stronger… and harder to control.

Misty's thoughts returned to the present. It was chilly today, a crisp February Monday evening. She gazed out her classroom window, noticing the stormy, overcast sky outside. The trees swayed wildly in the breeze, and a wind chime tinkled. For some reason, she felt afraid.

Misty heard a soft knocking. She walked over to her classroom door, and, upon opening it, she greeted her principal, Mr. Holmes.

Smiling politely, she said, "Hi, come in."

"Ah, my best employee is working overtime on her birthday, eh?"

"Well, I was just about to leave, so— "

"You're smart, hardworking, drop dead gorgeous…" Misty blushed. She always got so embarrassed when her boss flirted with her.

"Um, really, I have to get home to my family…"

"Oh, right, yeah, yeah. So sorry to keep you… but would you like to join me for a cup of coffee sometime? We can discuss plans for the school." The man smiled too widely.

"Um, maybe. I'll see you at the staff party tomorrow night, okay Mr. Holmes?" Actually, she had forgotten all about the party until the words came out of her mouth.

"Call me Henry." Misty managed one last smile before leaving the room. She sighed and shook her head. She didn't even know why that man tried. He was her boss, and he was at least twenty years older than she was.

Misty decided to take the elevator instead of the stairs, just because she was completely exhausted from lack of sleep the night before. She stepped into the elevator, pressed the round, white button for "B1 floor", and heard the familiar "ding" as the metal doors closed. Her classroom was on the top floor of the seven-story building.

The elevator slowly began to descend. Misty was lost in her thoughts, thinking about dinner, housework, the staff party…

The lights flickered. That was odd. _They must be having an electricity problem_, Misty figured, mildly alarmed. Then, the elevator stopped. Misty's heart began to race.

Something was wrong.

Suddenly, she heard a loud snapping noise above her. Misty felt a terrifying sensation, as if the elevator was swinging back and forth in its shaft. _One of the cables snapped! _Misty realized in shock. There was a horrifying creaking noise coming from outside the elevator, in the shaft. The noise grew louder and louder, until…

"SNAP!"

Misty screamed as the elevator plummeted towards the ground.

…..


	3. Ultimatum

**Chapter 3**

_It's over, _Misty thought to herself, _I'm going to die. _She braced herself and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to make this experience as painless as possible. She waited and waited for the impact, but it never came.

_But how?_

Opening her eyes, Misty was amazed to see that she was floating inside the elevator. Slowly, she and the elevator moved downward to land gracefully on the bottom floor. Misty was so lost in her thoughts that she wasn't even remotely prepared for what was to come.

She tried to open the elevator door, but it was mechanically closed, and the electricity had been cut off. She banged on the door and yelled, but it was after hours—there was no one there to hear her. She began to weep. Her knuckles were bleeding from pounding on the door, and she was losing her voice from yelling.

Then, to her astonishment, the doors began to open, with great difficulty. As the doors were being pulled apart from each other, the machinery holding them closed was breaking; Misty heard metal scraping and crumpling.

She gasped when she saw the bright blue light shining through the crack between the doors, which was growing larger and larger. There was only one explanation that came to mind. _Could it be? _

Then, someone was there in front of her. He was a man; tall, with sharp, refined facial features, dark hair, and pale skin. At first, she did not recognize this person… until she looked into his violet eyes.

Then, in a split second, he was gone. Disappeared. She didn't know where he had gone to now, but Mewtwo was back.

…..

By the time Misty got home, it was almost seven o'clock. _Great, _she thought, _I'm two hours late._

She entered the dining room to find Ash and Cameron seated at the table, looking forlorn. There was a display of brightly colored balloons and flowers in the center of the table. When Misty's family noticed her, they got out of their seats and halfheartedly exclaimed, "Happy birthday!"

Misty swallowed. _I'm sorry, Ash, _she thought glumly.

"Dinner's in the 'fridge," said Ash, "let me just heat it up again."

A few minutes later, the three sat around the table together eating Hawaiian pizza, Misty's favorite. Ash had actually made it from scratch, with homemade crust and fresh cut pineapple.

Misty tried to be cheerful and appreciative, but her thoughts just kept wandering back to Mewtwo and the elevator. A couple of times, Ash caught her spacing out and gave her a curious look.

"What's wrong?" he mouthed to her, but she just shrugged.

After dinner, Cameron presented Misty with her gift to her mother— a framed, startlingly accurate drawing of Ash, Misty, and Cameron, together. Misty loved it, although she tried to ignore the sadness she felt when she looked at it.

"Thank you, sweetie! You are such a great artist," Misty gushed, hugging her daughter tightly.

"You're welcome, Mom."

After presents came chocolate cake topped with mint chip ice cream, and although Misty was so full she barely had room, she managed to eat a whole piece. Shortly following the cake, it was Cameron's bedtime, and Misty tucked her daughter in and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Good night, honey."

"Good night, Mom… Happy birthday," Cameron replied.

"Thanks." Misty was about to exit the room when Cameron made one more comment.

"I'm sorry about this morning. I won't do it again." Misty was confused at first, but then she remembered what had happened.

"It's okay, sweetheart. I know you were just trying to help. Sweet dreams, okay?"

Misty closed Cameron's door quietly and returned downstairs to the kitchen.

Ash was just finishing putting the dishes in the dishwasher. He started the machine, and then washed and dried his hands.

"I hope you enjoyed your birthday," Ash said evenly. His tone was difficult to read, and he had his back to Misty, so she couldn't see his facial expression. Misty sighed, walking over to him.

"Of course I did," she replied, hugging his waist and kissing him on the cheek. She felt so overwhelmed.

"I hope the pizza was okay… It probably would have been better if I didn't have to heat it in the microwave to warm it up again." Whether he was trying to make her feel guilty or not, he was getting to her.

"Look, Ash, you don't know what happened! I don't like the way you're talking to me, like you suspect something…"

"Oh, no, Misty," Ash sounded sincere, "it's just with that job of yours, you come home late an awful lot. I'm just… worried, I guess."

_Worried about what? Me? Or what I'm doing? _Ash had no reason to think Misty was doing anything wrong. _But after seeing Mewtwo again, I sure feel like I have,_ she thought, looking away.

"Everything's fine," Misty said quickly, "I just… had some extra work to do." _If everything's fine, then why do I feel so guilty?_

"Okay." Ash replied and smiled at her. Misty was absolutely exhausted, but strangely wide awake at the same time.

"I'm going to bed," she said. She had a terribly strong urge to wash her hands. She went to the kitchen sink and began to run some hot water. She closed her eyes and was trying to relax and forget everything when she felt a wet kiss on the side of her neck.

"Ash," she said, trying to sound enthusiastic. She turned her head and their lips met, and he began to kiss her passionately. She accepted the kiss, though she was not in the mood at all. Her lips parted and he slipped his tongue into her mouth, gently caressing her cheek with his hand. She moved her hands to his back, and his found her waist. As they kissed, he began unbuttoning her shirt.

Misty's heart raced again. She just couldn't handle this right now, not after the events of the evening.

She broke the kiss. Ash looked hurt.

"Ash…" she said, "I'm sorry…"

"It's alright." Ash said shortly, forcing a smile. Misty could tell he was attempting to look upbeat, but it just wasn't working.

"It's just… I'm tired."

"I understand." Ash gave her another kiss on the cheek and then left the room. Misty sighed. _Some birthday_, she thought. Why did all of this have to happen today?

…

_Humans are so oblivious_, Mewtwo thought to himself. _They don't notice anything around them, not even when it's right in front of their faces_. Mewtwo stood on top of the Pokemon Tech building in his original form, watching the humans on the street below. _They are so immersed in their cars, their electronics… if just one of them bothered to look around him, I would be discovered. _Sometimes he joked with himself that it was completely unnecessary learning to shape shift; he could simply walk around in plain sight and no one would notice him.

He was still somewhat in disbelief that he had chosen to come back to civilization. In the last eight years, he had created a perfect habitat for himself and his cloned pokemon, _away_ from humans, where he thought he would be perfectly content. The only time he had left his newfound home was when he briefly traveled around, collecting human DNA samples.

That was another project he had planned to abandon, but, for some reason, could not bring himself to. He thought he had wanted to forget all about humans, but instead he spent years sequencing their DNA. Shortly after he left New Island, vowing to never go back there, he returned to collect the valuable data he had saved in his computer system. He then destroyed the upper floors of the building so that no one could ever find the remnants of his laboratory. He built a similar, but more advanced, system in his new home. After retrieving DNA samples from people of all different nationalities, genders, and ages, he used an original computer program to compare them.

He told himself it was just out of curiosity. Naturally, studying Ash's DNA in his laboratory on New Island had sparked Mewtwo's interest in the subject. As he began recombining the sequences, splicing together exons from hundreds of different humans, he told himself he was only doing research. He was not creating anything; he simply wished to better understand how the human body functioned.

However, whatever his original intentions were, the end product was a perfect human DNA sequence… at least, perfect according to Mewtwo. He rationalized that he was only choosing the most "favorable" genes. Yes, he had chosen the combinations of alleles least prone to genetic disease, but much of the code dictating physical appearance was entirely based on personal preference.

Finally, after months and months of studying and memorizing the artificial sequence, Mewtwo admitted something to himself: he wanted to become human again. He had been creating a unique human DNA sequence so that he could shape shift into a body that was suitable to him.

As much as he tried to twist the memories in his mind of his time on New Island to reflect a dreadful experience, he could not deceive himself forever. As strange as being a temporary human was, Mewtwo had enjoyed some part of it. Much of that was because of Misty, though Mewtwo tried not to think about her most of the time. Allowing her into his thoughts made his purpose seem unclear again. Remembering his time with Misty made him want to embrace the humanity in him instead of running from it like he planned.

Mewtwo eventually wholly embraced the project, working on it night and day. His cloned pokemon companions grew worried; they were seeing less and less of their leader, and when they did encounter him, he never communicated to them what was going on or why he was acting differently. Unbeknownst to Mewtwo, they began spying on him while he worked, attempting to discover his plan.

Once Mewtwo had the DNA sequence memorized, he tentatively began to practice transforming, using his psychic powers to change his own DNA to match his template. At first, the process was slow and painful, but never as bad as that first attempt on New Island. He also was able to refine his ability to recognize which pieces should be cut out, which should remain intact, and how these seemingly insignificant choices affected his phenotype.

After months of practice, Mewtwo could almost perfectly control which aspects of his genotype he changed. He figured out how to alter his physical appearance while leaving his psychic powers entirely intact, and he also decided he preferred to leave his eyes their original color and shape. This was the one physical feature that would set him apart from normal humans. Also, he discovered how "routine maintenance", which was a quick daily check for unstable portions of DNA inside his body, could prevent him from involuntarily reverting back to his original form. It was amazing how, after a while, Mewtwo could actually _feel _the parts that were destabilizing and instantly correct them. He could now disassemble or reassemble his DNA at any time of his choosing, transforming back and forth at his discretion.

One day, all of the cloned pokemon and their offspring cornered Mewtwo as he was leaving his new lab. Angry voices said to him, _you are a pokemon like us! Why are you trying to become a human? Stop ignoring your true nature!_ Mewtwo tried to explain his vision to them, but they did not understand. It was simply more evidence proving to him what he already knew; he would never completely belong in the pokemon world _or_ the human world.

His pokemon companions gave him an ultimatum: he had to make a choice. He could either abandon his project and choose to live as a normal pokemon as they did, or leave to reside in the human world.

He chose to leave.

His closest allies, Pikachu and Meowth, who had been with him since the lab on New Island, tried to convince Mewtwo to change his mind, but even they would not support him in continuing to shift between human and pokemon form. Giving up his newfound ability was not an option; departure was the only choice.

He left that night, taking nothing with him. He no longer required his computer to shift forms, and with his awesome strength and power he could easily fend for himself.

He traveled the world for a while, a nomad. Though he was fascinated by the behavior of the members of different cultures, he was always disappointed to find that some of the people, wherever he traveled, displayed signs of the malevolent nature he had come to despise— cruelty, self interest, and hatred for others.

Mewtwo visited the Kanto region more frequently than anywhere else. It was a long time before he finally admitted to himself it was because he was looking for someone— Misty.

It took over a year, traveling to different cities in the region. Sometimes, he listened to people's thoughts, trying to tell if any of the mental voices matched Misty's. But when he did find her, it was because of her hair— he saw it and recognized it from several hundred yards away.

He followed her home, keeping himself hidden, and stifled his feelings of devastation that she was married to _Ash_, of all people, and that they had a daughter together. For a moment, Mewtwo lost all hope of the two ever reconnecting; Misty was happily married and had birthed another man's daughter.

Everything changed the first time he saw the child.

Misty was leaving the house, holding her daughter's hand protectively as the two walked down the sidewalk. Immediately, Mewtwo sensed something he had never come across before in his life, yet he knew instantly what it was.

It was his own psychic signature emanating from this little girl. As if she sensed Mewtwo's presence, Misty's daughter stopped in her tracks and turned around. Mewtwo barely had time to conceal himself. He saw her eyes— deep purple eyes similar to his own. There were no traces of Ash in the girl's eyes, though some of her other physical features resembled him.

_That girl is… my daughter,_ Mewtwo realized, barely believing it himself, _she was conceived on New Island, when I shape shifted into Ash's body._ Misty, unaware of Mewtwo's presence, led her daughter away, not understanding what the young girl had been so interested in.

Mewtwo continued to watch Misty and her daughter over the next few weeks, but he never intended to establish contact with either of them. He was fascinated by Misty and _his child_, who he still sometimes couldn't believe was his, but he did not want to interfere with their lives.

Until the elevator.

Mewtwo had been on top of the Pokemon Tech building as he was now. He had found it to be a spacious, comfortable place to think and watch the world below (and, it was somewhere he could be close to Misty without her becoming aware he was there). With Mewtwo's superior hearing, he knew everything that was happening at Pokemon Tech that evening without having to be inside the building.

He heard Misty's conversation with her boss, the sound of her footsteps advancing towards the elevator, and— most disturbingly— the sound of the cable snapping.

Mewtwo's most prominent concern at that moment was saving her, although a part of him also thought it was suspicious that an elevator that had been reliable since it was built, and had not displayed any signs of malfunction at any other point that day, happened to fail completely the moment Misty stepped inside.

Mewtwo quickly arrested the elevator's uncontrolled descent with his psychic power. In reality, it was unnecessary for him to enter the building at all; he could have stopped it from a mile away.

But, selfishly, he wanted Misty to know that it was _he_ who saved her life. He wanted her to know what he was now capable of— becoming human at will. He made the impulsive decision to make his presence known to her as he telekinetically forced the elevator doors open.

When he saw her face, he couldn't handle it. It was too much. His body and mind were flooded with an uncontrollable cascade of emotions, and he fled without saying a word.

_Tonight,_ he thought, _will be different._ He desperately wanted to see Misty, to speak with her again, and, this time, he would not run away.

…..


	4. Lighten up

**Chapter 4**

Misty was overwhelmed. There were too many voices, all blending and clashing with each other; and loud, obnoxious laughter echoed off the walls. It gave her a headache. She had already drunk too much wine, and it was a big mistake. She could not handle one more coworker flirting with her or one more "cordial" conversation with an acquaintance she secretly couldn't stand.

She decided to retreat to the hallway for some space. Taking a deep breath, Misty filled her lungs with air, and, as she exhaled, she tried to erase the tension and uneasiness she felt.

It didn't work.

Looking across the hall, she shuddered when she saw the empty shaft of the elevator, now decorated with caution tape and a big 'OUT OF ORDER' sign in front of it. She personally thought the sign was overkill; no one in her right mind would try to step into a dark, empty elevator shaft. Of course, after the stupid jokes and buzzed conversations she had heard tonight, she wasn't sure everyone she worked with _was_ in their right mind…

She could still hear their voices from out in the hall. Mr. Holmes was boisterously narrating a personal story to another coworker just inside the door. Mr. Holmes's tone was loud and obnoxious, but Misty wasn't sure if it was drunkenness or just his personality.

The poor coworker (a man, she gathered from hearing his brief interjections of "oh" and "really?") politely listened. She wondered who it was; she didn't recognize the man's voice. There were some retired employees she didn't know who had been invited to the party, but they were mostly over the age of fifty, and this man sounded young.

Finally, Mr. Holmes ended his story. "So what location of Pokemon Tech did you say you taught at again?"

"I am the principal of the Ivory City location."

"Ah, Ivory… I see."

Misty raised an eyebrow. Ivory City? She had never even heard of it, and she knew both the Kanto and Johto regions well because of Ash. Either this man was from a long way away, or he was making it up.

"What type of pokemon do you train?" asked Mr. Holmes.

"I train all types," the man replied. His voice was low, flat, and emotionless, and Misty had no clue whether he was enjoying the conversation, or if Mr. Holmes was annoying him to death. "But I specialize in the psychic type."

_Psychic type? That's interesting,_ Misty thought to herself.

"Yikes!" exclaimed Mr. Holmes, "That type can be tough to raise! I never had the patience for 'em, myself. I don't like raising types that are hard to control. I like to catch 'em young, usually normal and fighting types, that'll always do what I tell 'em."

There was a pause in the conversation. Even from the other side of the door, Misty could sense the tension in the air. When the unknown man spoke again, Misty heard the obvious irritation in his voice.

"Pokemon are not meant to be controlled or forced to obey commands without question. Pokemon and their trainers are supposed to work together, as equals," the man said coldly.

Misty cringed as Mr. Holmes laughed. "Well, different strokes for different folks!" he commented. The other man did not reply, and Mr. Holmes just kept talking, oblivious.

"What have you got in your party right now, if I may ask?"

"I do not have a "party", as you call it, but I am currently raising an abra."

Mr. Holmes laughed again. Misty was getting frustrated— her boss could be so tactless!

"An abra, huh? What level? Fifteen or so?"

"Seventy-five."

"Seventy-_five?_" Mr. Holmes asked incredulously, not really caring if he got an answer, "and you still haven't made it evolve into a kadabra?"

"Only a poor trainer would force a pokemon to evolve against its will." The man was now outright angry. The intensity in his voice gave Misty the chills.

"Ok, point taken," Mr. Holmes chuckled nervously, "lighten up, buddy." Misty heard him walk away.

Misty had to know who this man was. She opened the door, stepped back into the room, saw his face, and thought, _oh my God…_

….

_Two hours earlier…_

Mewtwo looked at his reflection in the window of Pokemon Tech. Sometimes, his human form still took some getting used to.

He was well over six feet tall (Mewtwo had determined from the experience of being in Ash's body that he did _not_ like feeling small), with pale skin and medium-length, jet-black hair. He was indistinguishable from a normal man, except, of course, his striking violet eyes.

Earlier that day, Mewtwo had rented a suit from a local formal clothing shop. He had been wearing no shoes and his only set of clothes, which was dirty and grungy, into the shop, and the woman who assisted him flirted incessantly and gave him a huge discount on the suit and dress shoes, along with a free "promotional" t-shirt with the shop's logo. From the few encounters Mewtwo had had with human females in this form, he gathered he was very attractive. He found it ironic that if any of them ever saw his true appearance, they would most likely run away in terror.

Mewtwo checked his watch (another item he had picked up for himself that day). It was 6:33 pm. The staff party would begin in twenty-seven minutes.

Taking a deep breath, he reached for the door handle and stepped inside the building. There was a blond woman, perhaps 30 or 35 years old, behind the front desk. She smiled at Mewtwo. Mewtwo had heard while eavesdropping from the roof that her name was Marnie.

"Hello, sir. May I help you?"

Mewtwo looked into her eyes, and his glowed blue.

"Marnie," he imprinted in her mind, "you know who I am. You have seen me around here many times."

He made sure he fully encoded the information before he continued.

"I am the principal of the Ivory City Pokemon Tech. I am a skilled pokemon trainer." She was still mesmerized by his gaze. He finished with, "I was invited to the party tonight."

"You were invited," Marnie said, and opened a drawer behind the desk to take out a blank nametag for Mewtwo. She had her pen poised to write something down on it when she looked back at Mewtwo and asked,

"What was your name again, sir?"

Mewtwo thought for a moment. "Michael," he said.

"Oh, of course! Now I remember." She wrote, 'Michael' down on the name tag and smoothed it onto Mewtwo's suit. Mewtwo hoped the adhesive didn't damage the material; he was planning to return the suit at some point.

Mewtwo thanked her and started walking towards the staircase (the party was on the second floor). Behind him, he heard the receptionist call, "it was nice to see you again, Michael!"

"You too, Marnie," he called back, chuckling to himself. _Humans._

Mewtwo climbed the stairs, running into several important members of the Pokemon Tech staff and one by one altering their memories to include "Michael", the prestigious Ivory City principal. It was just too easy. _I can be anyone I wish to be_, Mewtwo thought. However, there was something about manipulating people that brought back his guilt about luring those trainers to New Island eight years ago, and that turned him off wanting to do it all the time.

A few minutes later, Mewtwo was conversing with Misty's coworkers and enjoying a drink. He fit right in… almost. He impressed everyone with his extensive knowledge of pokemon (because he was a pokemon himself) and battle tactics. The whole time, however, he really only cared about finding Misty. Finally, he spotted her on the other side of the room. Appearing tired and uninterested in the party, she opened the door and stepped out into the hall. Mewtwo began to follow her when a large, overweight man came up behind him and began a conversation.

Although Mewtwo was usually skilled at suppressing his emotions, this man infuriated him. _What an ignorant, selfish person!_ Mewtwo thought with anger. This man was the very antithesis of everything Mewtwo hoped to become.

The worst part was, this man might have just ruined his opportunity to see Misty— she could already be gone.

Then, to his surprise, Misty opened the door and stepped back inside.

She froze for a moment. "You," she said softly. Mewtwo nodded. "Can we… talk privately?" she asked tentatively. Mewtwo was trying to read her expression. She was definitely not having the reaction he had expected, but, then again, he still had a lot to learn before he could claim to understand human emotions. Mewtwo lead her up several flights of stairs to his favorite spot— the roof.

…

Mewtwo waited for Misty to begin the conversation. A long silence passed as the two just looked at each other. Finally, Misty sighed and said, "Explain."

Mewtwo didn't know what to say. He had expected her to bombard him with questions, but "explain?"? How could he even begin?

"I have been far away for many years," he said, "I have had lots of time to do as I wish."

"So you wished to become human?" Misty retaliated bitterly. "That's not what you last told me."

"I…" Mewtwo hesitated. He had thought that at least part of her would be glad to see him, but now he was doubtful.

Recomposing himself, he said rationally, "I am not human".

"Sure looks like it to me."

Mewtwo held out his hands. _Watch,_ he communicated to her telepathically. Then, concentrating hard, he made little white hairs sprout on the backs of his hands. Slowly, the fingers became short and stubby, and the number of digits on each hand was reduced from 5 to 3. He held them up for Misty to see. She gaped.

"Mewtwo… stop! It's… unnatural…" She looked away, apparently disgusted. Mewtwo shifted his paws back into human hands. He was hurt. Deeply.

"Even after all these years," he spoke softly, "you still see me… the true me… as a monster."

Misty widened her eyes and looked at him again. "I never thought you were a monster," she said sincerely, the anger leaving her tone.

Mewtwo, again, was at a loss for words.

"Look," Misty said earnestly, "I can handle you as a human. I can handle you as a pokemon. But this… in between… It's just too weird. It freaks me out! I don't understand how you can do it!"

Mewtwo smiled. Something about her honesty and her choice of words reminded him of the Misty he had known eight years ago.

"The first time I tried was in the laboratory on New Island," he said, trying to reduce his years of hard work and practice down into a few words that Misty could understand, "I used your friend, Ash's, DNA as a template for altering mine." Mewtwo couldn't help inserting a little venom into the word, _Ash's_, but Misty seemed not to notice.

She looked puzzled. "If you used Ash's DNA, why do you look so different now?"

"I only used Ash's DNA the first time," he clarified, "which, to put it delicately, was an experience that could only be improved upon."

Misty appeared offended by this statement.

"No… I didn't mean… Not you," Mewtwo was becoming flustered. It always seemed to happen when he was speaking by mouth rather than telepathically; something about communicating through thoughts made him choose his words more carefully. Also, he felt emotions more intensely in human form. "It was just… learning to transform, that first time… was very painful. Physically." _And changing back unexpectedly was even worse,_ he recalled.

Misty's eyes shined with tears. "I'm so sorry," she said, and lifted her forearm to her face as if to hide. Mewtwo gently grasped her wrist and guided it back down to her side, looking into her eyes.

"There is no reason for you to apologize," Mewtwo said. She had done nothing wrong; his transformation was his own choice. Why were humans so illogical sometimes?

Misty didn't reply, so Mewtwo continued his explanation. "After New Island, I collected hundreds of human DNA samples, and I used them… to create this," he finished, gesturing to himself.

Misty studied him from head to toe for a few moments before stating, "Unbelievable."

Mewtwo looked at her inquisitively.

"It's just that you look completely different," she explained, "I mean, you're _human_... but, at the same time… you look like you."

Mewtwo glowed with pride. That was _exactly_ what his goal had been when he had created the artificial sequence.

He smiled at Misty, and she tried, and failed, to hold back a smile in return.

Misty's eyes moved to Mewtwo's nametag.

"Michael, huh?" she joked sarcastically, "As in, 'don't call me Mike'?"

"I had to disguise my identity," Mewtwo tried to explain, "to get into that party, I used my power to… persuade a few people to accept me. Do not worry; my actions had minimal effects. I just altered a few memories—"

"You're amazing," Misty said breathlessly, interrupting him. She appeared captivated by him, incessantly studying the details of his face, his hair, his body...

She peered seriously into his eyes once again. "It scares me."

Mewtwo hesitated, breathing in sharply. "You… the way you affect me… it scares me, too."

Mewtwo noticed just then that somehow, in the course of the conversation, they had unwittingly moved closer to each other. Misty's face was now just inches from his. He could hear her heart pounding.

He studied her face. Though it differed subtly from the face in his memories, he still saw it as the very definition of beauty. It was perfectly heart shaped, framed by soft auburn hair and sprinkled with freckles. Her huge, bright blue eyes were wide and her soft lips were slightly parted.

He knew exactly what he wanted at this moment… but what about Misty? Was it what she wanted? What she needed?

…


	5. Headache

**Chapter 5**

Misty's lips were nearly touching Mewtwo's. She could feel his body heat radiating out and warming her, and she wanted to so, so badly…

But she just couldn't. She barely had enough willpower to manage it, but she turned her head and backed away.

No matter how right it felt, she knew that this— a relationship with Mewtwo— could not happen. She thought about Ash, faithfully waiting for her at the home they shared together.

And she remembered her anger.

Mewtwo had left her so abruptly before, with almost no explanation. He had decided so suddenly, and clearly communicated to her, that he was _disgusted_ by her race. Then, eight years later, he shows up, masquerading as a member of the same race he had been so eager to escape. Could she really be involved with someone so fickle, so unreliable? Perhaps her feelings for Ash were not as strong as her feelings for Mewtwo, but there was one thing she knew: Ash was always reliable. He would always be there for her. They would continue to support each other and raise their daughter together in a stable environment. She could never be certain of that with Mewtwo.

"You were gone too long," Misty said firmly, "and now I have Ash."

Mewtwo's eyes darkened at the mention of Ash's name.

She ended with a final stab, "I don't want another disappointment."

There was one more long moment of silence.

"I'm going back now," Misty said, and, taking one last look at Mewtwo, she began her descent down the many staircases to the ground.

…..

Ash heard the front door close quietly. He looked at the clock. 1:05? Who could it be at this hour?

Very groggy, Ash lay in bed for a few more moments, trying to make sense of his thoughts. _It must be Misty_, he concluded. It had to be Misty. Cameron had gone to bed hours ago. But Misty was supposed to have been home by ten…

Ash forced himself to get out of bed. His pajama pants were sticky with cold sweat, and he felt as if he had just awakened from a nightmare. Shirtless, he could feel the cool air on his bare skin. His gaze fell on the side of the bed where Misty should have been. Last night, she had gotten up to sleep on the living room couch in the middle of the night. Ash was worried about his wife; she seemed depressed. But even more so, he worried that… maybe… she didn't love him anymore.

In the beginning of their relationship, everything had seemed perfect. Misty had looked at him with love and adoration in her eyes, and the two used to make love almost every night. Now, they could barely hold a conversation. Ash missed the old days when they were just friends, blindly guessing about how the other might feel. They didn't have any adult matters to worry about. They didn't have jobs or a mortgage. All they cared about was winning gym badges. Ash smiled to himself at the memory.

He decided to go to the kitchen. It was dark in there, but Ash was too groggy to search for the light switch. He opened the refrigerator and picked up an almost-empty carton of milk. He lifted it like a soda bottle and drank straight from the container.

"Ash…" a soft whisper of a voice said. Ash jumped in surprise and quickly set the milk down. Misty hated it when he drank it like that. He was about to argue his case that the carton was near empty when he saw the way his wife appeared, sitting there at the kitchen table. She was massaging her temples with her hands, and her hair was very messy and windblown. Even in the dark, Ash could tell that she had been crying.

"Misty… what…" Ash stuttered, in shock, "What happened?"

"Nothing," Misty replied evenly.

Ash got the impression that he shouldn't pry any further. If she was going to come home after midnight looking like she'd been through hell, and then dare to call it "nothing", he wasn't going to bother arguing with her. He pulled out a chair next to her and put his arm around her. Her body felt stiff and tense, like she couldn't relax at all.

"Pika!" Ash glanced down, and next to him stood his pokemon, looking concerned. Ash scooped Pikachu up and placed him on Misty's lap. Pikachu licked her face. Misty laughed a little, but it sounded kind of like a sob. She began to pet Pikachu with one hand, and Pikachu snuggled against her.

The three of them remained there like that for a few minutes, until Ash yawned. Misty was still distraught, but she managed to say, "You should get some sleep." Ash nodded and stood up, planting a kiss on top of Misty's head. Pikachu leapt off her lap and followed Ash back up the bedroom.

….

Still on top of the Pokemon Tech building, Mewtwo heard screams. They were almost too quiet for him to hear, which meant they were coming from several miles away; he had to move quickly.

Even though Misty was not interested in a relationship with him, he still had to make sure that she was safe. Whatever the reason people were screaming was, Mewtwo had to make sure Misty and her daughter were nowhere near the action. Transforming into his original form to ensure he was at full strength, Mewtwo flew at neck break speed towards the source of the noise. After a while, he noticed he was right above some railroad tracks.

Mewtwo realized something— at some point, his head had started to ache dully. It was more annoying than anything, but, nevertheless, it distracted him from his mission. He pushed this information to the back of his mind, trying to focus on what he was doing.

Suddenly, a huge "CRASH!" split through the stillness of the night. A train, speeding at an uncontrollably fast pace, had smashed through the crossing barrier where it was supposed to stop and was headed straight for a cliff hanging over the ocean.

Was Misty on that train? Did it matter? Either way, Mewtwo knew what he had to do. He focused on the train, utilizing his full psychic capacity to stop it. It glowed blue and began to slow down, but it was still moving far too fast!

Mewtwo's headache was intensifying, now transforming into a sharp pain right between his eyes.

He raced after the speeding vehicle. Again, he tried to bring it to a halt, and, once more, he failed. He cursed to himself before slamming his body against the top of the train, pulling with all of his physical strength and mental power. It _still_ would not come to a complete stop!

Mewtwo's head throbbed with pain— at this point it was almost unbearable. There were less than two hundred feet left before the train reached the edge of the cliff. Fighting the agony, he pulled even harder, exerting his entire being into this one task, until, finally, the train halted, mere inches from the overhang. Mewtwo felt more exhausted than he had ever been in his entire life. Out of breath, he collapsed on top of the train, completely spent. _Why am I so tired? _he thought, _this is unlike me. _Just when he was thinking he might pass out from the fatigue and pain, he heard voices.

"What happened?"

"Why'd we stop?"

"We're saved!"

"That was unnatural!"

"Call the police!"

The voices swirled together in Mewtwo's mind, and he still didn't know for sure if Misty had been on the train or not, but he knew he had to get out of there soon if he didn't want to be spotted. With the last of his strength, he managed to stand up and slowly float away from the scene. He landed in a nearby tree, which would be his home for the rest of the night.

…

Domino chuckled to herself, placing a tiny magnetic device back in her pocket. Mewtwo had fallen into Team Rocket's trap! Maybe he wasn't as intelligent as her boss thought. She looked at the people around her on the train; they looked terrified, shocked, and confused. It was hysterical. She giggled to herself.

For a moment there, Domino didn't think Mewtwo would be able to stop the train. She was equipped with a parachute and floatation device for herself just in case, but all of these other people probably would have died… it would have been so sad for them and their families. She snorted. _As if it's my problem,_ she thought. She picked up her walkie talkie.

"Double-Oh-Nine to Giovanni, over," she said.

"Yes?" Giovanni replied without flourish.

"Operation successful. Over."

"Good. I hope your luck continues in the future. Goodbye." Domino pouted. _He could have at least thanked me! I risked getting my hair messed up and my brand new uniform all wet!_


	6. BIOHAZARD

**Chapter 6**

Mewtwo awoke the next day feeling like he had been hit by the train instead of stopping it. Every muscle in his body ached, and his head throbbed. He didn't understand. He'd lifted extremely heavy objects before, some that had weighed thousands of pounds. He hadn't even had to lift the train; he'd just needed to decrease its momentum, so why had it been so difficult? It could have been that the train had just been more than he could handle, but he doubted that.

Mewtwo didn't even really want to consider this, but could his power be deteriorating? Did that mean he would eventually lose it? _Maybe I am getting old_, Mewtwo considered. After all, he had no idea how long his lifespan was. He was the first one of his species, so there was nothing to compare himself to. He had expected he would live a very long time, maybe even longer than a human, but he never could be sure.

_What if I am dying _now_? _Mewtwo wondered. But, all in all, it really didn't make sense that he was dying. Just yesterday, he had felt fine. It seemed that randomly, his power was simply weaker than before, but he didn't have the slightest idea why.

…

"So what's the news?" Giovanni demanded through the walkie talkie.

"Well, it… it's…" the Rocket grunt stammered, terrified.

"It's _what?_ I don't have time for this. Is it awake?"

"W… well…sort of… y-yes, but…"

"Then get on with the next phase of our plan! Don't waste my time with useless details. Just keep it occupied until I arrive." Giovanni's minions sometimes disgusted him with their incompetence.

"No, boss, wait! It's important—"

CLICK.

The grunt sank to his knees, kneeling on the filthy floor of the Cinnabar Island laboratory. He couldn't stop trembling. Why, why did he have to be involved in this project? He had had no idea what he was getting himself into…

He stared into the wild, menacing eyes of the creature standing on top of the resurrection machine, slowly backing away from it until the wall behind him arrested his progress. He cringed as the beast uttered a single sound:

"Mew!"

…..

Misty knew that it couldn't work. It could never work. She was _married_.

But did she love Ash, or was she just supposed to love Ash?

She hated to think about it, but she regretted marrying him all those years ago. She felt so guilty; there was nothing wrong with Ash as a husband. He was gentle, caring, and hardworking. He was handsome and good in bed. But she just didn't _feel _anything for him anymore, other than platonic love and respect.

When Ash asked Misty to marry him all those years ago, it had come so suddenly, and she had only been sixteen. She had felt obligated to marry Ash, since she was carrying what he thought was his child. Misty's sisters had been overjoyed (mostly, Misty suspected, because Ash had grown more handsome as he got older), and they had wholeheartedly supported the marriage.

Another factor behind Misty's decision to agree to the marriage was that, after her experience on New Island, Misty was confused about her feelings for Ash for a while. She thought that maybe being with Mewtwo in Ash's body had made her attracted to Ash. And, when she discovered that wasn't the case, she still deluded herself for a while by unconsciously pretending that he was actually Mewtwo, and that somehow it had worked out for them to be together.

At first it was wonderful; it seemed Ash's every move, his every word, reminded her of those perfect days on the island.

Over time, though, those precious memories faded farther and farther into the past, and Misty began to only see Ash as Ash, and she accepted that the one she truly loved was gone forever. The harshness of her reality became impossible to ignore. She tried to act like nothing was wrong, but sometimes she could sense that Ash knew something was out of place.

She sighed. If she wasn't in love with Ash, then why couldn't she have fallen for Rudy, Danny, or even Brock? Mewtwo was a pokemon. He was created in a laboratory, and the only way they could be together is if he used some complex scientific procedure to manipulate his DNA.

She laughed in disbelief of how crazy it sounded.

Despite that, in her heart, she knew she had to see him again. She needed to be honest for the first time in eight years. Her daughter needed to meet her real father, and she needed to tell Ash the truth. The hard part was, she knew that she could never do that without breaking his heart.

….

Giovanni's red and black helicopter came to a smooth landing outside the entrance of the Cinnabar Island laboratory. The helicopter's door slowly opened and the Team Rocket leader stepped out, taking a look around. He had to make sure that nobody besides Team Rocket was present at the lab; their project could not be discovered. Giovanni had paid the head scientists at the lab a great deal of money to vacate the facility for a couple of months so that he could use it to carry out his plans.

He swiped his special card key in the door of the laboratory. A light flashed green as it unlocked, allowing him entrance. His black, polished shoes click-clacked on the tiled floor as he made his way down the hall to the door at the back of the facility. The door was made of sturdy metal, and there was a huge black and yellow sign on it that read, "WARNING: BIOHAZARD. AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY BEYOND THIS POINT".

Giovanni searched around in his jacket pocket for his key to this door and found that it was missing. He frowned, hoping it hadn't fallen into the wrong hands…

He knocked on the door.

"It's Giovanni," he said. No answer. Giovanni knocked again, louder this time.

"I don't have time for games, Bruce. Let me in," he said more harshly.

Again, he was met with silence.

"Bruce, if this door is not open in ten seconds, your job is gone!" He slammed his fists into the door.

Ten seconds passed, and still nothing.

"AAARGHH!" Giovanni hated being annoyed. When he got that door open, Bruce would be losing more than his job.

Giovanni, seething with anger, made his way across the laboratory and began climbing the staircase to the second floor, where the surveillance room was located. _I want to see what that idiot is up to, _he thought furiously.

Upon entering the room full of monitors, he noticed that most of them displayed still images of empty rooms. Sitting at the desk in front of the screens, he switched one of the monitors over to display the inside of the room in the back.

Giovanni was stunned when he laid eyes on the gruesome scene. The first thing he noticed was the body of Bruce, lying motionless on the floor, covered in blood. Bruce was a large, muscular man; Giovanni had been sure he could handle one resurrected pokemon.

He couldn't have been more wrong.

When he saw the thing that had killed his grunt, his blood ran cold.

He had been expecting Mew. Instead, he had a monster.

It appeared that the resurrection machine had succeeded in reanimating the creature; it was moving around with a disturbing, irregular gate. However, parts of its skin and musculature appeared to be missing, as if the pokemon had come to life before it was fully formed. Connective tissue, teeth, and organs could be seen clearly through the number of sickening holes where there should have been organic material.

Cursing to himself, Giovanni used his cell phone to dial the number the owner of the laboratory, Dr. Warren, had given him "in case anything goes wrong".

That was a bit of an understatement.

Though Giovanni had tried to keep Team Rocket's plan as undisclosed as possible, they had needed instructions on how to operate the resurrection machine, which Dr. Warren had provided. Giovanni had paid him an extra large sum of money for his services (and to insure the doctor would turn a blind eye to the true objective of their "experiment").

"Hello, you've reached the Pokemon Research Institute. May I help you?" A receptionist's voice answered.

"I need to speak to Doctor Warren immediately," Giovanni said urgently.

"I'm sorry, he's in a meeting at the moment. May I take a message?" she replied cheerfully.

"You don't understand, this is of the utmost importance! Tell him it's Giovanni."

"Please hold."

Blandly pleasant music played on the other line.

A couple of minutes passed by, and Giovanni drummed his fingers anxiously. Finally, the music stopped abruptly and a deep voice said,

"Warren." In the doctor's heavy accent, his name sounded like "Vorren".

"Doctor… what is the matter with my experiment?" The doctor must have noticed the panic in Giovanni's voice, because he sounded concerned when he replied.

"Does it not wake up?" It was clear English was the doctor's second language.

"No, it is alive, but… something went wrong. It's… incomplete."

There was a terrible silence on the other end. After several seconds passed, Giovanni slammed his fist down on the surveillance office desk.

"Do you intend to keep ignoring me, or are you going to stop wasting my time and help me fix this?" he questioned impatiently.

"Replication and transcription enzymes, you add?" the doctor asked uneasily.

"What? I have no idea what you're talking about. My associate, who is now _dead_, by the way, prepared the experiment."

The doctor's tone became frantic. "If specific substance not added… or added at wrong time… can have disastrous effect!"

Giovanni made a noise of frustration. "Don't tell me what is already obvious, just tell me how to fix it!"

"Without enzyme, cell division too slow… if such a creature was to survive…"

"But what do I _do!_?" Giovanni was at the end of his patience.

He heard the doctor take a deep breath. "Nothing," Warren said dejectedly.

"_Nothing?!_"

"Operation cannot be reversed. Creature must be destroyed."

Giovanni hung up the phone. Sighing, he looked at the repulsive thing trapped in the room once again. He had no hope of finding another Mew anywhere, or even the remains of a deceased one; the one he had brought back to the lab had been the first one sighted in thousands of years.

_This one will have to do,_ he decided reluctantly. He picked up his walkie talkie.

"Giovanni to Double-Oh-Nine. I am at the lab. I need backup. Send me a team of fifteen men, five fully-loaded tranquilizer guns, and another key to the restricted room," he cursed, and then grudgingly added, "over."

"Okay, boss, I'm on it. Over," she chirped. Giovanni was content not to have to answer to any of her stupid questions this time.

He put the walkie talkie down, and then he called the pilot of his helicopter, who was waiting outside, on his cell phone.

"I need you to be at Pokemon Technical Institute, the Kanto location, in one hour," Giovanni instructed, "You will be transporting one passenger from there to the lab. I will remain here for now. Is that clear?"

The man confirmed, and Giovanni heard the helicopter's huge propeller blades start whirring as he hung up the phone.

…

Ash knew there was something wrong with Misty. He had sensed it for a while, but had chosen to ignore the feeling until now. There was definitely something she was hiding from him, he was sure, and, based the way she had been acting lately, it was something big.

She was always coming home late and making up excuses (or sometimes, not even bothering to say anything at all, like last night). Even worse, she always seemed on edge and easily upset.

Since the day Cameron was born, Ash could tell that Misty knew something about their daughter that he didn't. He had several theories, but the one that seemed the most plausible was that Cameron wasn't really his daughter.

However, there was a lot of evidence to disprove that hypothesis. For example, Cameron looked like Ash's daughter, minus the eyes, which didn't resemble her mother's or her father's. Ash always figured it was some kind of recessive gene. But besides that, Cameron was short, with dark, wild hair, just like her father, and people were always saying she was the spitting image of Ash.

But Ash still sensed something was off about Cameron, though he hated to admit it.

Maybe he would try to talk to Misty about it tonight, at their anniversary dinner.

…


	7. Crooked

**Chapter 7**

It was 5 o'clock. Misty had just left Pokemon Tech to pick up Cameron from her after school program, since Ash had said he had "a special errand to run before tonight" and couldn't himself. Misty held hands with the small girl as they walked to the bus stop together.

"How was school today, honey?" Misty asked. Cameron, rather than answering right away, furrowed her brow in thought, as if she was seriously considering each event that had happened before answering.

"It was good," she finally said brightly. Misty smiled at her. _At least _someone_ had a good day today,_ she thought. Misty had been preoccupied all day with thoughts of Mewtwo and what she would say when she talked to Ash.

"Yeah? It was good? What did you do today?"

"We read a book and drew pictures. The book was boring 'cause it was too easy, but the pictures were fun."

"Did the teacher let you take any of them home with you?" Misty asked. Her daughter's pictures were always so beautiful; she was so artistically talented for a girl her age.

"Yeah. Wanna see?" The girl reached in her jacket pocket and retrieved a folded piece of paper.

"Of course I do!" Misty exclaimed, watching as Cameron carefully unfolded the drawing.

Misty was taken aback when she saw what the picture was of— a magnificently sketched Mew and Mewtwo.

Cameron looked puzzled by her mother's silence. "Do you like it?" she asked.

"Oh, honey, it's beautiful," Misty reassured her, giving her daughter's shoulder a squeeze, "but where did you learn to draw them?"

"I saw a picture online," she replied proudly. Misty was relieved; it was just some article on the internet Cameron had read. She had never actually _seen_ these pokemon.

Cameron then took another piece of paper out of her opposite pocket and unfolded it, handing it to Misty. "I drew this one today, too."

This time, Misty audibly gasped when she saw the image. It was a tall man with black hair and violet eyes, dressed in a suit. There was no doubt that it was a drawing of Mewtwo, in human form!

"Mommy? What's wrong?"

"N- nothing, sweetheart," Misty answered nervously. "Where did you see this man, Cameron?"

The girl giggled. "In your head, silly!" she said playfully, "he's been there for two days!"

Misty exhaled, letting go of the tension she was holding. Cameron was definitely her father's daughter.

"Come on, sweetie, let's go home," Misty said, "we can have breakfast for dinner."

"Yay!"

She was about to take her daughter's hand again when her cell phone rang. She looked at the caller ID and saw that it was her boss, Mr. Holmes. She pressed "answer" and held up the phone to her ear.

"Hello?" she said, curious as to why he would be calling her after hours.

"Misty, hi," Mr. Holmes said in a creepily smooth voice.

"Hi. What's going on?"

"Listen… I need you to come in and fill out some paperwork. We don't have some of your information on file, and I've been forgetting to ask you about it until now."

"Ok, sure. Can it wait until I come in tomorrow morning?" Misty looked at Cameron. She was standing perfectly still, her eyes fixed on something in the road.

"Actually, sorry, but no. Marnie needs to do the payroll tomorrow, and for that we need your information tonight. Can you come by in, say, ten, fifteen minutes and we'll get it done real quick?"

Misty sighed, frustrated. "Okay," she said, "but is it alright if I bring my daughter with me? I just picked her up from her after school program."

"Yeah, sure thing," said Mr. Holmes, "See you soon!"

Misty hung up the phone. She turned and faced her daughter, who was still staring at the road.

"Come on Cameron, it's time to go. Mommy's got an errand to run." Misty then noticed that her daughter's eyes were glowing blue.

Alarmed, Misty put her hand on her daughter's shoulder and gently shook her. "Honey, what are you doing? Stop it before someone sees you!"

"The lines in the road are crooked," Cameron explained calmly, her eyes fading back to their original color, "I was trying to fix them."

…

Henry Holmes set the office phone back on its base. He sighed. He knew he had to follow Giovanni's orders, but _damn_ Misty was hot, and involving her in Team Rocket's scheme was definitely going to ruin his chances with her…

_Oh well,_ he thought optimistically, _at least I'll get a huge bonus when this thing's over with._

Mr. Holmes had never planned on helping out Team Rocket, until, about a month ago, he received a call from Giovanni offering to pay him an enormous sum of money to "keep an eye on Misty Waterflower" for the next few weeks. Mr. Holmes didn't understand why, but he agreed (he wanted the money, and what was so bad about looking at that hot, young body a little more than usual anyway?).

Giovanni had instructed Mr. Holmes to call him daily to report any unusual findings about Misty. Every day until this past week, Mr. Holmes's reports were uneventful, and Giovanni seemed to become more and more frustrated with each phone call.

Finally, on Monday, Giovanni had instructed Mr. Holmes to snap one of the elevator's cables while Misty was inside it. At first, he had refused, but the Team Rocket boss assured him she wouldn't be hurt. Giovanni had also said "she needs to be kept alive for our plan to continue; her safety is of interest to me", so Mr. Holmes had reluctantly agreed.

After he cut the cable, Mr. Holmes ran down the stairs to the first floor to see what would happen. He was shocked to see a tall, unfamiliar man standing there. The man generated a blue light that surrounded the elevator and forced its doors open, saving Misty's life. Just a few seconds after she stepped out, the man took off so fast it was like he vanished into thin air. _That must be what Giovanni is looking for_, Mr. Holmes concluded. Even though Giovanni had told him Misty wouldn't be hurt, he was relieved when he saw her step out of the elevator, unharmed.

Misty had appeared dazed and confused by the incident, so, luckily, she didn't notice Mr. Holmes watching her as she left the building. Mr. Holmes then ran back up to his office to report to Giovanni (who replied, "excellent!") and to call a repairman for the elevator.

The next day, something even stranger occurred— the same man who had saved Misty appeared at the staff party, masquerading as some "Michael" from Ivory City. Mr. Holmes thought he was an arrogant bastard, the way he insulted Mr. Holmes's training techniques, and Mr. Holmes didn't buy his Ivory City story for one second. The strangest part was when Misty and the man disappeared together somewhere for an hour. _How the heck does Misty know that lunatic?_ Mr. Holmes had wondered. However, he decided not to expose the man, as he thought it might interfere with Giovanni's plan. He simply called and reported the evening's events.

Then, finally, just a half an hour ago, Mr. Holmes received a call from Giovanni instructing him to bring Misty to Pokemon Tech. That part had been easy; Misty was such a responsible and dedicated worker that she would do whatever her boss told her to (except, unfortunately, go out with him).

Mr. Holmes heard a noise outside and looked out the window to see a black and red helicopter about to land behind the building. His cell phone buzzed on his desk and he picked it up to see a new text message had arrived. It was from an unknown number.

**When she arrives, bring her out back. Giovanni's orders.**

….

Misty frowned as she approached the front door of Pokemon Tech. She had a funny feeling that something was off. Since when had paperwork become so urgent?

She squeezed her daughter's hand tightly as she opened the door.

Mr. Holmes was waiting inside to greet her. He smiled, but he had a strange nervous energy about him. He wasn't holding any papers.

"Where should I go to fill out the paperwork?" Misty said, "I'd like to make this fast, since I need to get my daughter home."

Mr. Holmes looked at Cameron, made a stupid silly face and said, "Hi, kiddo!" Cameron did not look amused.

"Actually," Mr. Holmes then said to Misty, "I need you to come out back with me first. I want to show you something."

Misty furrowed her brow in confusion. What could Mr. Holmes possibly have to show her out back? "Well, it would be better if we could do it another time…"

"No, no, it will only take a second," said Mr. Holmes casually, gesturing for Misty to follow him.

"That man is ugly inside his head," whispered Cameron, "not pretty like Mommy."

"Not now, honey! Not in front of people," Misty started to follow Mr. Holmes, hoping to get this over with as quickly as possible.

"But, Mommy…"

Misty shushed her.

They made their way to the other side of the building, where Mr. Holmes stopped in front of the back door and stepped aside.

"Ladies first," he said, and motioned for Misty to proceed through the closed door.

She eyed him strangely. _He's chivalrous enough to let me go first, but not enough to open the door for me? Hmmm…_

She turned the handle and stepped through the door, and Cameron followed.

Misty screamed as she was seized by two men dressed in all black. She caught a brief glimpse of their vehicle, a black and red helicopter with an "RR" logo on the side, before they covered her eyes and mouth. _Team Rocket,_ she thought. She tried to fight the men, but they were just too strong.

Misty heard her daughter cry out and struggled harder.

"What do I do with the little girl?" Mr. Holmes yelled frantically.

"What?" asked one of the men anxiously.

"Shit… Giovanni didn't say anything about a little girl!" added the other.

"We don't have time for this," the first man said angrily, "just put her in the copter!"

Misty and Cameron, gagged, blindfolded, and struggling, were led to the vehicle and strapped into two adjacent seats. Misty's hands were then tied behind her back. She heard the engine start up and the propeller blades begin spinning. Shortly after, her gag was removed, but not her blindfold.

"I'm taking this out, but don't bother making any noise," instructed one of the men, "no one can hear you scream anyway." She could tell by his footsteps that he then began walking towards the front of the helicopter, away from her.

"Cameron," Misty whispered, "why didn't you use your power to escape from them?"

"You told me not around other people," her daughter whispered back.

Misty mentally slapped herself.

She tried moving her hands around in her restraints. They were made of some kind of thick cloth, or maybe rope. _They aren't very tight, _she noted. Although they were too restrictive for her to slip a hand out, she could slide her arm forward through the loop up to her mid forearm.

She remembered something: her cell phone! The men had taken her purse, but her cell phone… she had put it back in her pocket after her conversation with Mr. Holmes!

_Ugh, Mr. Holmes, _she thought bitterly, _I always knew you were a jerk, but I didn't think you would ever stoop to Team Rocket's level!_

Sliding her hand as far forward as it would go in the restraint, Misty tried to reach the phone. Her fingertips barely graced the top of it, which slightly protruded from her pocket.

She gritted her teeth, twisted her hip, and forced her forearm even farther through the loop, cutting off her circulation momentarily. Her fingers wrapped around the phone and she pulled it free from her pocket.

She didn't need to see the keys of the phone to dial Ash's number. He was number two on her speed dial, so she just counted one key over from the left, pressed, and held it down.

Leaning her head down as close to the phone as possible, Misty could still only faintly hear the ring on the other line.

It rang once, twice, three times… and went to voicemail. Misty's heart sank. Ash rarely checked his messages.

"Ash," Misty said softly, not wanting the Rockets to know she had a cell phone, "I have been kidnapped by Team Rocket. They are taking me somewhere in a helicopter. Cameron is with me. Please call the police!"

"Hey, what are you up to back there?" yelled one of the men, quickly approaching her.

_Damn it,_ Misty thought. The man tore the phone out of her hand and tightened her restraints until they cut into her wrists painfully.

"Don't you dare try anything else like that, or I'll throw the little girl out the window!"

Misty nodded. She wanted herself and her daughter to stay alive. The phone was gone now anyway. Now, it was up to Ash.

_Why didn't he answer his phone? _Misty wondered miserably. _He should have been home by now… _Then, she remembered something she'd forgotten. _Oh my God… today is our anniversary! Ash must be at the restaurant right now!_


	8. Anniversary

**Chapter 8**

Ash was seated at the town's nicest restaurant, the Full Moon. Taking a sip of his drink (it was his third of the evening already), he sighed impatiently and glanced at his watch for the umpteenth time, praying that it was simply fast, and that Misty wasn't over an hour late. Did she completely forget about their anniversary? Did he really mean that little to her? _Don't think so negatively, Ash, _he thought to himself, _maybe she has a good reason. _He hoped so, but Misty had certainly been preoccupied a lot lately… and with what? Or even… _who?_

Ash was so consumed by his thoughts that he failed to notice his surroundings, so when he heard a soft, melodic voice, he jumped in surprise.

"Ash?"

He looked up to see a tall brunette quickly approaching his table. She looked so familiar… could it be? Was it really… May?

"Ash! Oh, my goodness, I haven't seen you in years! This is so exciting!" May certainly looked excited; her shiny, shoulder length ash-brown hair bounced and her eyes sparkled. She was much taller than Misty, at least five foot seven, and she sported a bright smile across her tanned face.

"May…" Ash said, dazed, "what are you doing here?"

"I'm in town visiting a friend," she said, "we were at the bar chatting when I spotted you sitting here all by yourself, and I decided to say hello!" May pointed out her friend, who was a petite, cute blond. The girl waved at Ash. "What are _you_ doing here?" she said to Ash.

"Well, I was supposed to meet someone here, but… they didn't show up," he said, a little bitterly.

"Do you want to join us?" May asked. May's friend, who was eavesdropping, nodded eagerly and gestured for Ash to come sit next to her.

"Umm…" Ash thought about Misty for a moment. She wouldn't be happy if she found out he was hanging out at the bar with two other women.

But, then again, he wasn't very happy that she hadn't bothered to show up for their anniversary dinner either.

"Sure," Ash said, taking off his formal jacket (it was hot in there) and leaving it on the back of the seat as he stood up.

Due to a sudden lapse of judgment, and, perhaps, the alcohol he had already consumed, Ash's right hand stealthily slid his wedding ring off his finger, leaving it in his jacket pocket.

With his cell phone.

Ash and May headed over to the bar together, oblivious to the soft ringing emanating from the abandoned jacket.

…

Evening came, and Mewtwo still felt weak. If anything, he felt even worse than the night before, when he'd stopped the train. His head pain was incessant, and it made it difficult to think. He hadn't tried again since the train incident, but he guessed that using his power would be excruciating.

All day, Mewtwo had been slowly making his way back to the city from the site of the train accident on foot. He felt so awful that he was starting to wonder if his earlier speculations about his being at the end of his life were wrong after all; it certainly felt like he could be dying.

The sun began to set as he approached the city limits, and the tall buildings cast dark, ominous shadows.

He paused before entering the city. _I must not be seen like this,_ he thought reluctantly. It might take all of his strength, but he had to transform back into human form if he was going to be walking around at street level.

He remembered hastily discarding the suit he had been wearing the night before, when he had hurriedly changed back to his original form. He had not wanted to waste any time, so he had not been careful where he left it, and now he regretted that.

_I must have dropped it somewhere nearby,_ he thought, and began looking around.

Surely enough, after a few minutes he saw the pants, wrinkled and covered in leaves and dirt, and, about a hundred feet away, the shirt and jacket lay crumpled on the ground. _Now I will _never _be able to return it,_ he thought, marveling at how much that bothered him. Maybe shape shifting really _had_ made him more human.

Mewtwo braced himself. _Now for the difficult part,_ he thought. Was he even strong enough to transform? He guessed he'd find out. Closing his eyes, he invoked his psychic energy and began manipulating the DNA sequences inside his cells.

If the headache was agonizing, this was almost unbearable. It took over twice as long as it normally would, and it was nearly impossible to ignore the splitting pain between his eyes. However, when he finally ceased transforming and felt his body with his hands, he determined it had become human. Unfortunately, the pain had also escalated, and Mewtwo was unsure he'd be able to change back without passing out.

Abruptly, Mewtwo sensed something very disturbing. He faintly recognized his own psychic signature emanating from another location, and embedded within it was apprehension, and then panic.

_It is Misty's daughter… _our _daughter,_ he realized, _and something is terrifying her._ Then, he heard Misty's voice scream.

He took off running as fast as he could towards the source of the turmoil. He knew the city very well by now and soon realized he was headed in the direction of Pokemon Tech.

The psychic energy he sensed was fading. _She's moving farther away,_ he thought, and tried to run faster. _If only I was at full strength!_

Finally, he arrived at the front of the building, drenched in sweat, to see a red and black helicopter rising up into the sky. He recognized it immediately; it was the same type of helicopter Giovanni had used to transport Mewtwo to the Viridian City gym all those years ago. There was no doubt in Mewtwo's mind that Team Rocket had abducted Misty and her daughter.

_I have to do something,_ Mewtwo thought urgently, _they must be stopped!_

With a running start, Mewtwo used the remainder of his power to fly up toward the helicopter, careful to stay out of the pilot's view. He ignored the screaming nerves in his brain as he focused all his energy on keeping up with the flying vehicle. _I may be dying,_ thought Mewtwo, _but first I must insure the safety of Misty and our daughter. _He just hoped he wouldn't collapse before the helicopter reached its destination.

…

Cameron had something slippery under her foot.

She had noticed it a few minutes ago when she had been squirming around, trying to get more comfortable in her restrained position.

The thing was flat and glossy, and she could slide it back and forth across the carpet of the helicopter's floor easily.

Because she was tied to her chair with her hands behind her back, she couldn't pick it up physically, but…

Cameron's blindfold hid her glowing blue eyes. The thing on the floor slowly floated upward until it landed in her bound hand. She felt it, trying to determine what it could be.

_It's a card,_ she thought, _like a hotel key._ She didn't know what it was for, but she decided to keep it anyway. Using her telekinesis, she hid the card in her pocket with her drawings.

Soon, Cameron felt her stomach turn as the helicopter began moving downwards.

"I think we're landing," her mother whispered to her nervously. Slowly, the vehicle slowed its progress until Cameron felt a slight bump, and heard the propellers stop turning. They had reached the ground.

Cameron heard the footsteps of the two Rockets approaching.

"You two were such good girls the rest of the way that we're gonna give you a break and take the blindfolds off," said one of the men patronizingly.

Cameron felt her blindfold being removed, and then she and her mother were escorted to the door. A mechanical step ladder descended from the floor of the helicopter to the ground to make their exit more manageable.

The man holding Cameron pushed and prodded her roughly, forcing her down the stairs. _I don't like these men very much_, she thought, irritated. As soon as the party reached the ground, Cameron looked around her and didn't recognize her surroundings. The group was standing in front of a large building with an engraved stone monument in front of it that read, "Cinnabar Island Research Laboratory. Founded in 1950, rebuilt in 2001". In the distance, Cameron could hear the waves of the ocean and wished she could escape to go play at the beach.

Suddenly, Cameron heard a noise behind her that sounded like a man's grunt. She whirled around to see a tall man with black hair standing behind the helicopter, appearing exhausted and run down. He fell to his knees, then collapsed.

"Mewtwo!" Misty yelled and struggled to get away from the man who was holding her. Cameron frowned. _Mewtwo? Isn't that the pokemon I drew? _She thought curiously. The man restraining Cameron reached for his walkie talkie, and, holding her with one arm, he pressed a button down and said, "We're here, boss. We need back up— send a team outside."

A few seconds later, five Rockets ran out of the building, armed with tranquilizer guns. However, there was no need to use them; together they lifted the tall man's already limp form and carried him inside the building.

"No! Let him go!" Cameron's mother protested, but the men ignored her. Cameron listened to her mother's thoughts for a moment. They weren't clear and concise like sometimes; there were no words or pictures, only emotions. Cameron was surprised to sense her mother's intense feelings of fear, anger, and… love.


	9. Drunk

**Chapter 9**

The room was spinning. Ash was trying to dance with May, but he kept losing his balance and having to grab on to something to steady himself.

May laughed at Ash. "You're _drunk!_" she exclaimed loudly, and her silly giggle and slurred words told Ash that she was, too.

Ash had lost count of how many drinks he'd had. At some point, the three of them had left the restaurant and somehow ended up at a nightclub called PokeUnderground (at that point, Ash had already been too intoxicated to remember which way they were walking), which played techno music and flashed bright, colorful lights that were illuminating May's beautiful face, changing it different hues.

May's friend (she had told Ash her name, but he had forgotten it) had turned out to be a nice, if somewhat reckless, girl who had been buying drinks all night and dancing suggestively. She was really pushy about the drinks, too; she kept offering to get Ash more and more shots. He had agreed to the first couple, but after a while it just got ridiculous.

May had had quite a few as well, and she was a lighter weight than her friend. She stumbled almost as much as Ash did, and the clutched each other for stability as they danced.

May's high heel slipped, and she fell backwards, shrieking. Ash lunged forward and wrapped his arms around her to catch her, and the two giggled drunkenly. Ash wasn't sure how it happened; everything was kind of a blur, but he realized they were kissing.

May smelled and tasted sweet and tangy, like tropical fruit. Ash wasn't sure if it was her perfume, or if he was tasting the last fruity mixed drink she had, but he liked it. They backed up against a wall and Ash's hands explored the slim, shapely curves of May's body as they kissed. In her heels, she was barely taller than Ash, and he found that incredibly sexy.

He rested his hands at the small of her back. Her dress's material was so tight that he could feel the softness of her hot skin underneath it. He nibbled on her bottom lip, and she moaned softly. He knew she noticed his arousal, and she pressed her body tighter against his, eliminating any space that had existed between the two of them.

May said something softly that Ash could barely make out.

"Do you want to go back to my hotel room with me?"

He pulled away and looked into her heavily lidded eyes. He didn't think he actually agreed, but before he knew it, May had grabbed a hold of his arm and said, "Come on. We have to get Zara."

_Oh yeah, that's what her name was,_ Ash thought.

May grabbed her friend, who was about to order another drink, and said "we have to go now."

The friend smiled, winked at Ash and followed them out the door.

It was a good thing Zara remembered which way they had walked, because Ash and May were totally out of it. Ash frowned. _Did she even drink any herself?_ Zara had ordered a lot of drinks, but it seemed like she always brought them to Ash.

When the trio walked by the door of the Full Moon, which was about to close, the man who had been Ash's server ran out behind them holding something.

"Mr. Ketchum," he called out, "you left your jacket!"

Ash turned around. _Oh, yeah._

"Thankss," he slurred, taking the jacket from the man. The man gave Ash a disapproving look. Later, Ash realized it was because he had told the server he was supposed to meet his wife there for their anniversary.

A few minutes later, the three found themselves in the back of a taxicab. Ash was seated in the middle, with May and Zara on either side of him. May was having trouble staying awake. She kept closing and opening her eyes, until finally her head lolled to the side and rested against the car door.

That was when Zara started to creep Ash out. She leaned over and whispered in his ear,

"Just so you know, I think you're _really hot_." Ash mumbled a "thank you" and turned his head to look at May, who was completely unaware of the situation unfolding. Zara placed her hand on Ash's thigh and leaned in again.

"Aren't you one of the Elite Four? That's sooo sexy." Ash declined to respond. He could feel her warm breath on his neck, and it would have felt good if it had been May's, but Zara's breath smelled sour.

"If you get with me," Zara said breathily, "I'll do _anything_ you want… Just tell me." She started to walk her fingers up his thigh. They felt like the legs of a huge bug pokemon.

Ash was thoroughly disturbed at this point, and he moved her hand away. Zara appeared hurt and angry.

"Look, you're nice and all, but… I'm married," he said, taking a moment to consider the connotations of that sentence after saying it. He had just planned on using it as an excuse to get away from Zara, but for the first time since he had seen May, Ash remembered Misty and felt an uncomfortable twinge of guilt.

"You're _what?!_"

Thankfully, the cab stopped at their destination and Ash gently shook May, who opened her eyes and yawned sleepily. Her hair was a mess, and her eye makeup was smudged on the side she'd been sleeping on. It was unappealingly asymmetrical. _Maybe this is a bad idea,_ Ash thought, his conscience sobering him.

Ash helped May out of the cab, as Zara stared daggers at both of them. May waved as the cab pulled away, oblivious.

"Come on," May slurred, and she started to lead the way to her hotel room. Ash had to help her along, as she was very unsteady on her feet. Ash had one arm around May, and he held his jacket in his other hand. The stairs were a difficult maneuver; May's room was on the second floor, and, for much of their ascent, Ash had to literally carry May to keep her upright. _This is a very bad idea,_ Ash decided, but now he was stuck; May needed someone to make sure she was safe, and he couldn't just take off.

It took multiple attempts for May to unlock the door with her hotel key (Ash had to point out to her that she was trying to use her credit card at first), but finally they made it inside. Ash looked around. The room was a mess; May's luggage lay strewn all around the room. Clothes, shoes, toiletries, and pokeballs were in unorganized piles everywhere. The bed was also unmade; the sheets were rumpled and the comforter was halfway on the floor.

"Come here, baby," May pulled Ash to her and kissed him sloppily. Her earlier appeal had all but disappeared. Ash pushed her away and held her at arm's length, looking at her seriously.

"May, listen. You're very drunk. I think you need to go to bed."

May protested with a whine, which transformed into a groan. Ash, alarmed, noticed her face— she looked very pale and queasy.

"Ash, I think I'm going to…" she held her hand over her mouth. Ash quickly rushed her to the bathroom, holding her hair back as she vomited into the toilet. He shuddered in disgust as he flushed it and used a wet cloth to clean May's face.

Too tired to fight him anymore, she complied as he led her to the bed, laying her down gently and removing her shoes.

"G'night," she said, and soon, he heard her snoring, out like a light.

Ash sighed. He thought about going home, but he had walked to the restaurant and was now across town from his house. It would take over an hour to get back there, and he was just too tired and still a little intoxicated. Removing his shirt and shoes and tossing his jacket on the floor, he lied down next to May, facing away from her, and quickly fell asleep.

…

Mewtwo could feel nothing but intense pain. The agonizing impulses crashed over his body over and over again like huge, relentless waves, threatening to pull him under.

He lay sprawled on his back with his eyes closed. Opening them seemed like a daunting task; his eyelids, like every other portion of his body, felt cripplingly heavy.

_Where am I?_ he questioned in his mind, and he tried to think of the last thing he recalled. _The helicopter…_ yes, that was right. But had he been able to reach its destination, or not?

_Yes_, he vaguely remembered. The helicopter had touched down, and a group of people had gotten out (someone had yelled, "Mewtwo!", he noted, which could only have been Misty), and then everything went blank. There was a prominent gap in his memory between his arrival, and now, laying here on a cold, hard floor.

Groaning, Mewtwo slowly forced his eyes to open. Bright florescent light flooded his vision and it felt as if his eyes and brain were on fire. He lay immobilized as everything began to come into focus.

White ceiling. White walls. A huge, metal, tubular machine. A clinical counter equipped with a deep sink, test tubes, beakers, and Erlenmeyer flasks.

This place deeply troubled Mewtwo, and it didn't take long for him to decipher the reason.

_This,_ Mewtwo realized with horror, _is the place of my birth._


	10. Monster

**Chapter 10**

_How can this be? _Mewtwo wondered, mystified. He had destroyed the lab ten years ago.

However, when he studied his surroundings a little more closely, he realized that they were not exactly the same as they had been before. Some things had been rearranged, and the walls looked cleaner and newer than they had when he had resided there. _The laboratory must have been reconstructed_, Mewtwo concluded.

With great effort, he propped himself up on his elbows. Suddenly, he was overcome with an intense sensation of dread, and it had nothing to do with the lab itself.

_What is that repugnant smell?_ he thought, wrinkling his nose. There was an odor of something dead, something rotten.

Mewtwo could also sense a disturbing psychic signature. It was so powerful that even in his weakened state, the feeling of it overwhelmed him. It was a familiar signature, similar to his own, but it was distorted; wickedly twisted and scrambled. _But not mine,_ he thought, relieved that it wasn't his daughter in such devastating emotional turmoil. Within the psychic waves he could sense sheer agony, suffering, _anger_. Whatever this creature was, it was miserable, and extremely mentally unstable.

Mewtwo tried to think of where he had picked up on the psychic energy of this creature before. It didn't take him long to remember.

_Mew_, he realized, shocked. Once he realized that, it was easier for him to pinpoint exactly where the signature was coming from.

Directly behind him.

Mewtwo grunted and winced in pain, and it took all of his effort to stand up and turn around. What he saw made his stomach turn.

The small catlike pokemon's appearance was so different from Mewtwo's memories of it that he would have scarcely recognized it if it weren't for its psychic signature. Its fine, white-pink fur that had been so similar to his own eight years ago now only existed in small, irregular patches distributed randomly across its body. It was thinner and more wiry than he remembered, giving it a gaunt, skeletal appearance. But the most disturbing aspect was that pieces of the pokemon were _missing_, and not as a result of normal injuries; it appeared that the pokemon was a product of a very poorly performed scientific experiment.

Although Mewtwo was terrified and disgusted by this Mew, he also felt a wave of sadness wash over him. He could feel the pokemon's suffering and despair in his own mind, and he empathized. _This thing, _he thought, _should never have been created. It is truly… a monster._ He then realized that eight years ago, he had had the same thoughts about himself, and, simultaneously, he knew at that moment that he didn't believe them anymore.

_Mew,_ he attempted to communicate telepathically, _what… happened to you?_

The creature's thoughts were too warped for Mewtwo to comprehend. When he tried to listen in, all he could decipher was a terrible noise, something comparable to metal scraping on metal blended with a thousand screaming insects.

To his horror, the creature lunged forward, emitting a powerful wave of psychic energy. Mewtwo attempted to conjure up a barrier, but his intense headache thwarted his efforts. He was forcefully knocked backward, his human body slamming against the wall, robbing his lungs of air. Mewtwo desperately inhaled, feeling his heart pounding in his chest.

_I am not strong enough to fight this_, he realized with dismay. Even at his full strength, he had not been able to defeat Mew on the island all those years ago without passing out himself. Now that he could only use a tiny portion of his power, there was no way he could protect himself against his adversary. Also, he sensed that the creature's anger and psychosis made it even more powerful… and more dangerous.

Mewtwo braced himself as he was telekinetically lifted and violently tossed across the room. He could feel parts of his human body breaking; he was beginning to bleed internally. Using what was left of his power, he could slowly heal himself, but Mew was breaking him down faster than he could build back up. He was powerless against this furious, tragic foe.

_So this is what it is like to die, _Mewtwo thought.

…

The two Rocket grunts led Misty and her daughter across the laboratory, roughly jerking them this way and that. Misty's wrists burned from her restraints, and her shoulders ached from having her arms behind her back for so long. The group stopped in front of a door that read, "OBSERVATION DECK", and one of the men used a card key to open it. The light flashed green and they entered.

The room was dark and rectangular, and it had nothing inside it but a few chairs side by side in a line. Its most prominent feature, however, was a huge, transparent window through which a large, clinical-looking area could be viewed below. As they approached the glass, Misty gasped. Down below was Mewtwo, still in human form, along with another figure, which was even more alarming.

_Mew?_ she inquired mentally, but this creature shared little resemblance with the tiny pokemon she had met eight years earlier. It appeared to have been constructed using Mew as a template, but, obviously, something had gone wrong. The creature's horrific deformities gave Misty the chills, and she had to look away. The Rockets tied Misty and Cameron to their chairs, and then left without saying a word.

"Mommy," Cameron said, "I'm scared."

"It's okay, honey," Misty replied, "we're going to be alright." She thought about asking Cameron to use her power to release their restraints, but she refrained from doing so. After seeing the creature below, Misty didn't know what other horrors the Rockets were hiding in this laboratory, and she didn't want Cameron to do anything that would risk her being subjected to them.

Misty heard footsteps moving closer to them. She turned her head, saw the crack in the door flash green, and an unfamiliar man stepped into the room. He appeared much more polished than the Rocket grunts, and he had an air of confidence about him that told Misty he was in charge of the operation.

"Mrs. Ketchum," he said in a falsely courteous tone, "how nice to make your acquaintance."

Unsurprisingly, Misty didn't feel like exchanging pleasantries at the moment. "Why have you brought us here?" she demanded, "and what do you want with Mewtwo?"

"In time, I will tell you," the man said calmly, "but first I believe I owe it to you to give you a little… history,"

Misty raised an eyebrow. _History?_

"My name is Giovanni," he said, "and, in the past, Mewtwo and I were… associates."

Misty's mind went to a conversation she had had with Mewtwo on the island. Mewtwo had mentioned working with Giovanni before, after Mewtwo had destroyed the laboratory where he was created. Mewtwo had told her he was controlling and cruel, and Misty gathered that knowing Giovanni was part of the reason Mewtwo had such a low opinion of humanity.

"I know who you are," she said, "You are the terrible man who abused Mewtwo!"

"'Abused' is a strong word, Mrs. Ketchum," said Giovanni, and she could hear just a hint of bitterness disguised in his conversational tone, "I was merely trying to help Mewtwo reach its full potential as a psychic pokemon."

There was an uncomfortable silence as Misty, Cameron, and Giovanni heard Mewtwo's cries of agony from behind the glass.

_Someone, anyone,_ Misty prayed in her head, her eyes welling up with tears, _please save him._

"And what about now?" questioned Misty angrily, "are you _helping_ him now? Don't you think he's been _helped_ enough?"

"Before I answer your question, I believe you should know a few things. I would appreciate it if you would keep your smart mouth shut for just a few minutes while I explain." Giovanni had dropped the friendly, conversational act.

Misty shot him a murderous look, but, honestly, she was curious.

Giovanni continued. "First of all, you may think of me as cruel, selfish, and heartless, and I'm sure that is the way my past associate depicted me to you. However, hear me out, and you may find that you and I are more similar than you think."

_Similar? Sorry Giovanni, but I'm not a psychopath. Give me a break, _thought Misty, rolling her eyes.

"Do not dismiss that premise so automatically, Mrs. Ketchum. You see, I began as a pokemon trainer— a gym leader, actually— just like yourself. Myself and my pokemon trained hard together for years, night and day, striving to be the best, until we reached our peak skill level. No amount of normal battling could make us any better. We felt an immense sense of accomplishment, because we had sacrificed our blood, sweat, and tears to reach that point. Together."

Misty said nothing, so the Rocket leader continued. "However, within me is a competitive spirit. I'm sure it resides within you as well. I believe becoming a gym leader requires it. I was not satisfied with "personal best". I wanted myself, and my pokemon, to be second to no trainer in the world. Together, we would be… _unstoppable._"

Giovanni paused for a moment, looking first at Misty, and then her daughter. His eyes lingered on Cameron for longer than Misty would have liked.

"She is a beautiful young girl," the Rocket leader commented, which only angered Misty, "such unique eyes…"

He cleared his throat and began his story again, slowly pacing around the room as he spoke.

"My desire to become the best— the world's toughest trainer— led me to form Team Rocket."

"You mean, instead of just training to get better, you had to resort to evil?" Misty asked sharply.

"Quiet," said Giovanni coldly, staring into her eyes. His gaze was dark and predatory, like an arbok about to strike. _We are not alike at all,_ Misty thought, _you can pretend whatever you want, Giovanni, but I see your true character in your eyes._

"Team Rocket's focus is to gather together all of the greatest, most powerful pokemon in the world, and harness that power to create an undefeatable team. That is our goal. That is why I wanted Mewtwo. Mewtwo _is_ the best… its power is unrivaled by any pokemon in existence."

Misty looked at her former lover through the glass again. He appeared helpless and miserable as he was thrown, over and over again, to the ground by Mew. At the moment, she detected none of this "unrivaled power" Giovanni spoke of. It greatly saddened, and angered, Misty.

She had had enough of the way Giovanni talked about Mewtwo, as if he was just another toy for the Team Rocket leader to play with. "_He_, not '_it'_!" Misty exclaimed.

Giovanni chuckled. "Because I wish for you to remain calm, without becoming upset as you are now, I will refer to Mewtwo as "him", while speaking to you from this point forward. Satisfied?"

_No_, Misty thought bitterly, but she didn't say anything.

"However," Giovanni continued, "Mewtwo did not share my goal. It was a pity, really, as he had so much potential. But he was only interested in his _purpose_, why he had been created. He was not satisfied with my explanation, as he may have told you."

_Mewtwo said that Giovanni told him, "you were created by humans to serve humans", _Misty remembered, which had made her sick at the time. Then, a disturbing thought crossed her mind. _How does Giovanni know all this about Mewtwo and I? How could he have possibly found out?_

"Another thing we have in common, Mrs. Ketchum," said Giovanni, smirking at her as if he knew some scandalous secret he wasn't willing to share, "is our mutual interest in Mewtwo… for _very_ different reasons, of course."

Misty's fear was confirmed. She froze. _He knows what happened on the island_, she realized, to her horror.

Giovanni must have noticed her facial expression, and he laughed cruelly.

"I must say, Mrs. _Ketchum_," he overemphasized the word "Ketchum" as if to dig the knife deeper, "I had expected it would be an interesting experience to secretly watch Mewtwo, but I hadn't foreseen that it would be quite so… _exciting_."

Misty felt sick to her stomach. She demanded, "How?"

"There is a simple explanation," he said nonchalantly, "I'm sure you're familiar with my associates Jesse and James?"

Misty nodded, just the thought of the two making her blood boil.

"Well, you may not be aware of this, but they were present at the little… get-together Mewtwo arranged eight years ago. That night was the one night in the history of their employment with Team Rocket that they actually accomplished something useful— installing cameras in the laboratory on New Island."

_Oh, god_, Misty thought, mortified.

"Of course, the original purpose was only to survey Mewtwo; we were waiting for the perfect moment to travel to that island and seize him. Unfortunately, the moment the storm ended, he departed to another location. I'm sure you remember that regrettable event." Giovanni smirked again.

"As for the whereabouts of Mewtwo after he disappeared that day, well, your guess is as good as mine… or perhaps, better." Misty's face was beet red. She couldn't believe somebody so evil, somebody she had just met today, knew everything about her relationship with Mewtwo. It was sickening.

"However, we gathered some intriguing information during that time," Misty could tell by the fervor in Giovanni's voice that he was nearing the conclusion of his story, "and we conjectured that one day, it would become useful. It took almost eight years, but, finally, Mewtwo reappeared in exactly the location we'd thought he would."

Misty looked at him quizzically.

"Near you." Giovanni finished.


	11. One missed call

Author's Note:

Please remember, reviews are to me as dilithium crystals are to the Starship Enterprise. I need my fuel in order to write what no man (or woman) has written before! Okay, done with the geekiness. Please take the time, if you will, to give me your feedback about the story. I would really appreciate it.

~TheFrogFromHell

**Chapter 11**

There was a long pause in the conversation then. Misty needed time to process all of this bizarre information. Her life had seemed so uneventful for the last few years, and now suddenly she was a central part of this outlandish, complicated, devious Team Rocket scheme.

"There's still something you haven't explained," Misty said softly.

Giovanni frowned. "What's that?" he asked.

"Mew". Misty looked at the creature again and cringed. She felt simultaneously repelled by it and sympathetic towards it.

"Ah, yes," Giovanni said, and sighed. "That part of the plan did not go quite as we had expected, but it still appears to be serving its purpose…" He eyed Mewtwo, who now lay still on the floor. Mew had ceased its brutal onslaught of attacks, for the moment.

"In order to recapture Mewtwo, we needed a pokemon powerful enough to weaken it…" Misty gave him a dirty look, "… _him_," Giovanni corrected. "As revealed by the cameras, Mew was the only pokemon that had ever posed a challenge to Mewtwo, so we knew we had to capture that pokemon in order to subdue him."

Misty nodded, but she was confused.

"But Mew disappeared on New Island," she said, "_I_ didn't even see where it had gone."

"Yes, well, a few months ago, I organized a Team Rocket mission to search for Mew on the island," explained Giovanni, "Unfortunately, when we found it, it was already deceased."

Misty felt a wave of deep remorse come over her. _Poor Mew_, she thought to herself, _it died trying to protect us._

"However, there was still hope. Here at the Cinnabar Island Lab, the head scientists were experimenting with resurrecting pokemon from ancient fossils," said Giovanni, "They had already succeeded with the extinct pokemon omanyte and kabuto, and they even resurrected an aerodactyl from a chunk of old amber."

_That's amazing,_ thought Misty, _if only the lab hadn't come under the control of Team Rocket…_

"We were granted access to the resurrection machine for a period of time, hoping to reanimate Mew," Giovanni said, a little regretfully. "Unfortunately, one of my associates was sloppy with his work… and paid for it dearly. That is the reason that this Mew… _differs _from the one you met on the island."

The two looked through at the glass. Mewtwo still lay motionless on the floor.

"Why is Mewtwo so weak?" Misty asked, "at least on the island, he was able to put up a fight."

Giovanni laughed. "That part I find particularly innovative. In order to insure absolutely that Mewtwo would fail against Mew, I had my associate, Domino, lure Mewtwo into a trap. She caused a train to run off its tracks, and when Mewtwo attempted to rescue the passengers, she activated a device that weakened his powers."

_Everything makes so much more sense now,_ Misty thought, remembering Mewtwo collapsing outside the helicopter.

"I designed the device myself," Giovanni continued, though Misty wasn't interested. "It lessens a psychic pokemon's powers temporarily by disrupting its brainwaves with special electromagnetic wavelengths."

Misty studied the Team Rocket leader, from the proud, arrogant expression on his face, down to his polished shoes. Never had she come across someone so intelligent, so passionate, yet so hungry for power that it blinded him to reason.

Giovanni peered through the glass again.

"It is time I left you now," he said, "it appears Mewtwo has been weakened enough… it is now time for the capture." He smiled maliciously and held up something he'd been keeping in his pocket— a masterball. He then turned on his heels and headed for the door.

"Giovanni, wait!" Misty exclaimed, "Just listen to me for one second."

The man looked over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow.

"You said you and I were alike," Misty said, "and maybe you're right— maybe we are. But this is something _I_ believe: you could never have become such a great trainer if you never cared about your pokemon at all. You have to have trust and love for your pokemon to become great." She looked again at poor Mewtwo and Mew, down in the clinical room. "Can't you remember how it felt to care about your pokemon? How it felt when they actually respected and trusted you? If you really cared about Mewtwo, you would never force him to battle for you. And, if you capture Mewtwo now, he will _never _trust or respect you as a trainer. Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

Giovanni eyed her seriously. For a moment, Misty thought he might be considering her words, but then he broke out into laughter.

"Stupid girl," he spat, "you do not understand me. You do not understand my goal. You have never experienced such immense power as I have. Maybe you are content with love, trust, and mediocrity, but I am certainly not. I will, once again, claim Mewtwo as my own, and there is nothing you can do to stop me."

Giovanni exited the room. _No_, Misty thought, _I can't live knowing Giovanni is using, and abusing, Mewtwo every day. I won't just sit here and watch this happen. There must be something I can do!_

…

The innumerable thoughts in Cameron's mind— her own, and those of her mother and the strange man— confused and overwhelmed her. Her mother's strong emotions clouded her thoughts, making them harder to decipher, and the thoughts of the strange man were so intense and scary that they made it difficult for Cameron to think straight.

However, she knew she had a lot of questions, some of which she'd already suspected the answers to for as long as she could remember.

After the strange man left the room, Cameron turned to her mother.

"Mommy," she asked, "is Mewtwo my daddy?"

Misty choked, and Cameron noticed a single tear rolling down her cheek. She could tell her mother was trying very hard to keep it together, but Cameron could sense her intense emotions.

"Yes, honey," Misty answered reluctantly, closing her eyes, "I was going to tell you soon, but… things came up."

"It's okay, Mommy," Cameron said, "I already knew it anyway."

Misty looked at her daughter incredulously. "How?" she inquired.

"Well, I didn't know that Mewtwo was my daddy until today, but I always thought that Dad might not be my real dad. We're just too different. And when I sensed Mewtwo outside the helicopter, he felt weird… he felt… like me. But there's one thing I don't get— I thought Mewtwo was a pokemon, but he looks like a human."

"Well," Misty explained, "he is a pokemon, but... he knows how to become human. Only sometimes."

Cameron did not understand, but she decided she would try to figure it out later.

"I'm so sorry, honey," Misty whispered, at last allowing herself to cry, "you finally get to meet your real dad, and then… _this_ has to happen."

The two looked at the scene through the glass and saw Giovanni open the door with a card key and step into the room, armed with his masterball and some kind of weapon. Mew stood poised for another opponent to battle, and Mewtwo still lay on the floor.

Cameron had a thought. _Card key…_

"No, Mommy, it doesn't have to happen," she said fervently, "I can save Mewtwo!"

"But honey, that room is locked. You can't get in there, and, even if you could, it's much too dangerous!" Misty looked concerned.

Cameron focused intensely on her restraints, and, using her psychic power, she began to loosen them. Once they were slack enough, she stood up out of her chair and they fell to the ground behind her feet. Cameron reached into her pocket.

"I found this in the helicopter," she said with a smile, holding up the card she'd picked up for her mother to see, "I think it might be the key to that room. And it's not dangerous for me— I can use my secret."

"Cameron," Misty said sternly, "I don't want you going down there. You'll get hurt!"

"I won't," she reassured her mother, heading for the door.

"Cameron, wait!" Misty shrieked, "As your mother, I am telling you to get back over here right now!"

"I'll be back," Cameron said, giving her mother an apologetic look. The door was locked from the inside but not the outside, Cameron gathered, because she was able to turn the handle and exit the room. Once outside the door, she could vaguely sense that her mother was thinking, _be careful_.

…

Ash awoke in the dark with a throbbing headache. _Where am I?_ he thought, momentarily forgetting the earlier events of the evening. He then realized he was lying on a queen sized bed next to someone who was soundly sleeping. _May's hotel room,_ he recalled, feeling sick and shameful that he was there. His eyes moved to a digital clock next to him on the night stand. 3:58 am. _Shit,_ he thought. _Misty has to be home by now, and she's probably worried sick!_

Ash clumsily rolled out of bed, searching around for his jacket. In the dark, he could just see the outline of the garment, crumpled up in a corner. Picking it up, he fumbled around in its pocket, finding his wedding band (which he guiltily slipped back onto his finger) and his cell phone. He flipped it open to notice a notification on the screen.

**!**

**One missed call**

**Misty Ketchum**

**7:38 pm**

He cursed to himself again. _That must have been just a few minutes after I went off with May,_ he thought ruefully. The phone bleeped and he saw that he had a voicemail. Dialing his mailbox and holding the phone up to his ear, his heart nearly stopped when he heard the content of the message.

"Ash, I have been kidnapped by Team Rocket. They are taking me somewhere in a helicopter. Cameron is with me. Please call the police!" Misty's voice was very soft, like she was trying not to be heard, but the inflection of panic in her tone was obvious.

_This is very bad, _he thought in horror, _Misty… I'm so sorry_. How could he ever forgive himself? He quickly began dialing the number for the police department. _I just hope it's not too late._


	12. Epinephrine

**Chapter 12**

Mewtwo was fading fast. He had been struck down so many times by Mew's powerful blows that he no longer felt any pain; his body was completely numb. He could not distinguish between each individual attack anymore; they all ran together, connected, unending.

Then, finally, a sensation of immense relief flooded Mewtwo's awareness. Anesthetized, Mewtwo's heart rate began to slow, and his breaths decreased in frequency. He felt content and relaxed, and he was no longer afraid of what was happening to him.

_I am dying, _he thought, and realized the notion no longer bothered him. He came to a quiet acceptance of his fate as the corners of his vision began to darken and he collapsed to the ground.

The next thing Mewtwo was conscious of was a sting, and then a jolt.

His heart raced, and he sat straight up, his eyes wide open. He looked around for Mew and saw it lying motionless a few feet away with a tranquilizer dart protruding from its chest. Mewtwo was overcome with disgust and anger when he saw the face of the man who had revived him— Giovanni. He loomed over Mewtwo carrying something, a syringe.

_Epinephrine, _Mewtwo conjectured. For a moment, he had thought he'd been cured of his injuries, that he was no longer dying. But now, once again, he could feel the anguish of his body failing from the inside out. He had been rid of this terrible pain, ready to escape his misery, and Giovanni had brought him back to experience it all again.

"_You_," Mewtwo growled lowly. He knew Giovanni was a cruel man, but Mewtwo was livid that he could be evil enough to deny him his most basic right— the right to death in a time of immense suffering.

"Me," Giovanni replied, grinning condescendingly. "Welcome back, my old friend. It appears that we will be working together once again." To Mewtwo's horror, Giovanni held up a masterball. "I revived you because, as you are surely aware, fainted pokemon cannot be captured."

Suddenly, Mewtwo heard a subtle, mechanical noise, and he and Giovanni whirled their heads around to look towards the entrance.

A tiny young girl stepped inside.

She had piles of thick, dark, messy hair that made her head look disproportionately big compared to her small body; pale skin with a light dusting of freckles; and striking violet eyes.

_Misty's daughter,_ Mewtwo thought, my _daughter._ Although Mewtwo was initially overjoyed to see her again, he also dreaded what could happen to her in this awful place.

Giovanni was unconcerned. In fact, he laughed at the girl. "How did you get in here, sweetheart? Shouldn't you be with your mommy?" He taunted.

The girl, _Cameron,_ Mewtwo recalled, did not dignify him with a response. She simply glared at him with a remarkably adult expression of loathing on her face.

Giovanni laughed again, longer and harder this time. "If only looks could kill," he joked. Not disturbed by the girl's presence, Giovanni turned back to Mewtwo and held up his masterball.

"You are _mine_," he said possessively, and threw the masterball.

Giovanni's victorious smile faded as the ball was abruptly knocked to the floor.

"_What?_" he asked no one, incredulously.

"Get away from him," Cameron's voice called from across the room, quietly but sternly.

Mewtwo was gripped by the sensation of Cameron's psychic signature— his own psychic signature. He looked over at her to notice her eyes glowing a shade of blue.

"No," muttered Giovanni, "this cannot be happening… I should have known… those _eyes_!" Glaring threateningly at Cameron, he ran for his masterball.

Before he could grasp it, Cameron levitated the ball up into the air, much higher than Giovanni could reach. Then, Mewtwo sensed a surge in her psychic energy as she hurled the ball towards the opposite side of the room, so forcefully that it dented the wall and snapped cleanly in half as it fell to the floor.

"No!" shouted Giovanni, "How dare you ruin my plans for Team Rocket! You ignorant child, you could never hope to grasp the magnitude of our goal!"

"I've been inside your head," Cameron replied heatedly, "and I've seen that you are an ugly, bad man!" She began advancing toward Giovanni, her eyes still glowing blue, and Giovanni began to inch backwards in apprehension. Mewtwo felt the flow of her psychic waves through his own mind like a buzz of electricity. The impulses seemed to build on each other, becoming stronger and stronger, like positive feedback. It was exhilarating.

"I _never_ want you near my father again!" She cried, and unleashed a huge wave of raw psychic energy that passed over Mewtwo's head and hit Giovanni square in the chest, undoubtedly breaking several ribs. The man was knocked backwards across the room, screaming, until he slammed into the wall and fell to the floor, unconscious.

Mewtwo marveled at his daughter as the cool glow faded from her eyes. _Her power is incredible,_ he thought in awe, _perhaps even as strong as mine._ He also couldn't believe that, with her extraordinary abilities, she had been forced to masquerade as a normal human child for so many years.

Cameron turned towards Mewtwo and began walking towards him. She knelt next to her father and studied him in detail.

"You're hurt," she said sorrowfully, "you're hurt bad."

"I know," said Mewtwo aloud.

"I don't want you to die."

"I do not wish to die either," replied Mewtwo, and he was almost grateful for Giovanni's reviving him. Almost.

Now that the excitement was over, the pain started to take a toll on Mewtwo once again. The effects of the epinephrine were wearing off, and he was beginning to feel overtired, anesthetized, and sedated. _The inevitable can only be avoided for so long,_ thought Mewtwo sadly. _At least I had the opportunity to speak to my child, just this once._

Just before he lapsed out of consciousness again, Mewtwo heard something stirring and dreaded what it could be. With great effort, he lifted his head and looked over to confirm his suspicions.

He was correct— it was Mew, and it was waking up.

….

Cameron heard the creature stirring behind her. She had been sensing its psychic waves becoming steadily more active for several minutes now, so she was unsurprised by its awakening.

It seemed as if the tranquilizer had calmed the pokemon down enough that its thoughts could now be understood. Cameron could feel its emotions and sensations, the most prominent being tremendous physical pain. Then, she was surprised to hear a coherent thought projected in her mind.

_Where am I? _the malformed Mew communicated telepathically, what_ am I?_

_You're in a lab,_ Cameron replied, _and you're a pokemon… but there's something wrong with you._

Mew cocked its head to the side inquisitively. _What is a pokemon? And why does my body hurt so badly?_

Cameron felt sad for the creature. From behind the glass, she had sensed that the pokemon hadn't actually wanted to hurt anyone; it was just disoriented, confused, and enraged by the intense pain it was in. _Maybe I can help it,_ she thought. She'd healed cuts and bruises on her own body before, after all, and she'd been able to heal her mother's finger. Maybe this wouldn't be any different.

She focused intently on the pokemon, paying careful attention to the parts of it that were formed incorrectly. Then, she pictured the pokemon's disconnected pieces of skin growing and fusing together. The pokemon's entire body began to glow blue.

This task proved to be a lot more difficult than healing small abrasions on Cameron's own body. When she healed herself, all she needed to do was speed up a natural process that would have eventually occurred on its own. However, this pokemon, she knew somehow, would not have recovered naturally. It seemed that it was alive independent of whether its body was fit for survival or not. In order to heal it, she had to actually create new tissue.

Mew closed its eyes as Cameron worked on its body, and she sensed a wonderful wave of relaxation and relief emanate from the small pokemon. When she was finished, the gruesome holes that had existed in the pokemon's skin had been reduced to small, scar-like blemishes that she guessed would always be there. However, there was no way to know if the pokemon was completely healed, or if it simply appeared normal on the outside.

_Thank you_, communicated Mew.

_You're welcome, _answered Cameron.

_What is to become of me now? _Mew was still afraid and concerned. Cameron thought for a moment.

_If you let me capture you, you can be fully healed at a Pokemon Center, and then, when I'm older, maybe I can be your trainer,_ Cameron suggested.

_Captured? _Mew seemed nervous.

_Inside a pokeball, like this one. _Cameron used her telekinesis to retrieve Giovanni's masterball from the other side of the room. She was easily able to fuse the two halves back together again, restoring the ball's use. _It doesn't hurt,_ Cameron said, and she knew this with certainty from listening to the thoughts of other captured pokemon in the past.

_You helped me,_ communicated Mew, _and I trust you._

_You won't be in the ball for too long,_ Cameron reassured it, _I will get you out again as soon as I can._

_Okay,_ Mew confirmed, and Cameron threw the masterball.

The pokemon transformed into a bright light and disappeared, and then the newly occupied masterball fell to the floor. Cameron waited for it to stop twitching, verifying that the pokemon had been caught, before she picked it up and pocketed it.

Just then, Misty and a large number of Officer Jennys burst through the door, their growlithes bearing their teeth and ready for battle.

"Mewtwo!" Misty shrieked, and ran to him.

One of the Officer Jennys yelled, "Call an ambulance!"

Cameron joined her mother, and the two of them knelt at Mewtwo's side and held him, trying desperately to determine if he was still alive.

As Misty checked for a pulse, Cameron could sense that he was living, but just barely. If he didn't get help soon, he would die.

"Cameron," Misty said, hugging her daughter tightly, "you were amazing."

Cameron hugged her back and smiled at her mother's praise, but she was worried about Mewtwo.

"Mommy," she said, "I think Mewtwo is dying."

Cameron noticed her mother's face was wet with tears, and wondered if she had stopped crying at all since they had been on the observation deck.

"I know, honey," Misty said sorrowfully. "Cameron… do you think you could use your power to heal Mewtwo?"

Cameron tried. She focused on Mewtwo's limp body, trying to determine the parts that were damaged and needed healing. However, they were just too numerous— Cameron sensed broken pieces were present in almost every portion of his body, and she knew she wouldn't be able to fix all of them in time.

"It's too much," she said, "he's just hurt too bad."

Misty sobbed and nodded her head in understanding, wrapping her arms around Mewtwo.

Faintly, Cameron began to hear sirens in the distance. The ambulance had already arrived!

A few minutes later, Mewtwo, and, to Cameron's dismay, the still unconscious Giovanni, had been moved onto stretchers and were being transported outside, where medical assistance was waiting.

"That man is very bad," Cameron told one of the Officer Jennys, pointing to Giovanni. "He should go to jail."

"Maybe he will," Officer Jenny replied politely, "but we have to question him first."

Misty and Cameron were allowed to join Mewtwo in the ambulance. Misty had told the Nurse Joys inside the vehicle that Mewtwo was her husband, even though Cameron knew that was a lie.

As the driver started up the ambulance, the Nurse Joys started hooking Mewtwo up to an IV.

"He's lost a lot of blood," one of them remarked concernedly, "He's going to need a transfusion. Do you know his blood type?"

"Umm," Misty said, "No…" Cameron wondered what a blood type was, and she realized that the nurses didn't know that Mewtwo was a pokemon.

Nurse Joy frowned and looked forlornly at Misty. "We need to get to the hospital right away."

Cameron could tell by her tone (and, also, by taking a quick listen into her thoughts) that Nurse Joy didn't think Mewtwo was going to make it to the hospital. _And even if he does, it might not work,_ Cameron thought, _hospitals are for people, not pokemon._

Then, Cameron had an idea— something that would be faster, and, if they arrived in time, had a better chance of saving Mewtwo.

"Don't take him to the hospital," she demanded boldly. Nurse Joy gave her a questioning look. Misty put her hand on Cameron's back.

"Honey…" she said, looking at her daughter warily.

"The hospital's too slow," Cameron explained, "he needs a Pokemon Center!"

…


	13. GET OUT!

**Chapter 13**

May groaned and opened her eyes. Her throbbing temples and the heaviness of her body told her that she was suffering from a massive hangover. She had been awakened by the sounds of voices in the room, which irritated her.

She sat up, and to her surprise— and embarrassment— Ash was there, fully dressed, talking to Officer Jenny. Sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating the mortifying disorganized state of the room, and, May was sure, the unattractive staleness of her day-old clothing and makeup.

"So you received this call at what time, Mr. Ketchum?"

"I didn't receive it, exactly," said Ash, sounding frustrated, "she called me at around seven thirty last night, but I was… occupied, so I didn't get the message until much later."

_Who called him?_ May thought.

"And it was your wife who called you?" asked Officer Jenny, writing something down on her notepad.

"Yes, I already told you that!"

_What?!_ May thought in shock, _his _wife_?_

To May's horror, Officer Jenny glanced over at her, studied her, and then turned back to Ash.

"That's not your wife?" The police officer asked, confused.

"Erm… no…" Ash's face was beet red. "She's… a friend."

May was furious. _So I'm a _friend_? After last night? Really, Ash?_

Officer Jenny frowned at Ash, looking displeased. "It appears that your relationship with your spouse is less than ideal, Mr. Ketchum."

Ash looked terrified. "Wait, you don't understand, officer— last night was supposed to be our anniversary dinner, and when she was, you know, over an hour late, I jumped to conclusions… I had no idea…"

_Anniversary dinner!?_ May had never been so livid. _Ash, you are such a pig!_

"So instead of calling her, or doing anything else to check on her, you went off with another woman?"

"Umm… well…"

Officer Jenny sighed. "Listen, Mr. Ketchum, you may have made some bad choices last night, but I don't think you're the type to kidnap your wife, and since you've got a…" she eyed May, "_verified_ alibi, I'm not going to arrest you. But I will be coming to your house later to follow up. Is that clear?"

Ash nodded. Officer Jenny made a few more notes, and then left the hotel room. Ash looked over at May and jumped in surprise when he saw she was awake.

"Oh… Good morning, May," he said brightly, trying to disguise the guilt in his voice. He was unsuccessful.

"Get out," May said coldly.

"But…"

"I said, GET OUT!"

Ash quickly exited the room.

…

Misty was exhausted. Sitting next to her sleeping daughter in the back seat as Officer Jenny drove the two of them home, it was all she could do to keep her eyes open.

When they arrived at the house, Misty was surprised to see another police car already parked out front. A second Officer Jenny emerged from the house and walked over to the vehicle Misty was in the back of to talk to her fellow officer. Misty's Officer Jenny rolled down the window.

"I was just asking the husband a few more questions," the Officer Jenny outside the car explained, "but then I got your call that she was safe, so I was just leaving." The policewoman gave Misty a sad look and shook her head. _What was that for?_ Misty wondered.

"Thank you, Officer Jenny," said the Officer Jenny in the car, "I'll take care of things from here."

The other Officer Jenny waved, got into her police car, and drove off.

Officer Jenny turned to Misty. "Do you want me to walk you inside?" She asked with care and concern.

"No thanks, we'll be fine," Misty assured her.

Officer Jenny nodded and smiled. Misty got out of the car and carried Cameron, still asleep, in her arms as she walked towards the front door.

_What an exhausting night_, Misty thought. Although she was fatigued, she also felt an immense sense of happiness and relief. She and Cameron were safe, and they had managed to get Mewtwo to a Pokemon Center, where Nurse Joy had assured them he was going to be alright. It had been difficult to convince the Nurse Joys in the ambulance, but finally they had agreed to take him (with some… special persuasion from Cameron, Misty suspected, which normally would have bothered her, but in this case the graveness of the situation required it). The Nurse Joy at the Pokemon Center had been mystified as to why pokemon medicinal techniques were effective on a "human", and she had asked far too many questions. _When Mewtwo wakes up, he will have to erase her memory,_ Misty thought, but she trusted that Mewtwo would be two steps ahead of her, as he always was.

Misty opened the front door and stepped inside the house. Ash was seated on the living room couch, and he looked a mess. His hair was disheveled, the dark circles under his eyes made Misty wonder if he'd slept at all the night before, and he was wearing a wrinkled formal suit with his shirt tails hanging out and his buttons undone. _He must have worn that for our anniversary,_ she concluded, a little guiltily.

"Misty," Ash said in relief, standing up to greet her.

Misty laid her daughter down on the couch, covering her with a blanket, and hugged Ash. He smelled like sweat, which she would have expected, since he'd been wearing the suit since last night, but she frowned when she smelled alcohol and a hint of something else… something sweet. _Perfume? No, it couldn't be…_

"I'm so glad to see you," Misty said honestly; she'd been afraid she'd never see Ash again at one point that night. "But I do have a question for you. Why didn't you answer your phone? Where were you?"

Ash sighed, breaking away from her and looking down at the floor with his hands in his pockets.

"Misty," he said, still avoiding her eye gaze, "we need to talk about some stuff."

Ash's tone worried her, but she knew he was right. It was time; she had to explain about Mewtwo and why Team Rocket had wanted to abduct her.

"Agreed," Misty said, "but first… I need a nap, and a shower."

…..

A few hours later, Misty and Ash had both cleaned themselves up and caught up on some much needed sleep. Cameron had slept the whole time, and Misty had relocated her up into her bedroom. Misty figured that using her power so much that night had drained Cameron's energy. She had changed her daughter's clothes and put her in her pajamas, and Misty had been surprised to find a masterball in Cameron's jacket pocket. She'd left it on the nightstand, figuring Cameron had kept it as a souvenir from the battle. It puzzled Misty, though, because the last time she had seen that ball it had been split in half; soon after that, while Cameron was battling Giovanni, the Officer Jennys had showed up and removed Misty from the observation deck. _Strange,_ Misty thought.

After she put Cameron to bed, Misty descended the stairs to meet Ash, who was once again seated on the couch. His foreboding expression made Misty anxious. Pikachu hopped up on the couch next to Ash, and he shooed it away. _What could be so wrong?_ Misty thought. There was definitely some other emotion overshadowing Ash's relief that Misty was safe.

"Misty," Ash began, after she had settled herself next to him on the couch, "about last night…" he trailed off, as if he knew his next sentence would be very difficult to say.

"Yes?" Misty asked, at this point extremely intrigued as to what Ash had to tell her.

"Last night, when you didn't show up for dinner… well, kidnapping was not the first thing that came to mind," Ash said. Misty nodded to communicate that she understood. _I know I've been a bad wife lately,_ she thought with guilt, _I haven't been there for him._

"Anyway, I was upset and angry, so when… an old friend showed up, I decided to forget about the whole thing. I took off."

Misty was confused. "An old friend? And what do you mean "took off"?"

Ash closed his eyes and looked away from her. "It was May Maple," he said reluctantly, "and I… left, with her."

Misty's heart sank. She hoped he didn't mean what she thought he meant. "May Maple?" she said, trying to remember who she was, "you mean, that girl that used to do pokemon contests?" She vaguely recalled that May had been big in the media a few years ago after winning some prestigious awards. Ash nodded.

"So… you left with her," Misty said, trying to keep her voice calm, "then what?"

Ash sighed, holding his forehead in his hands, weaving his fingers in his hair. "We went to a club together, and then… I took her back to her hotel room."

"_What?_"

"No! It's not what you think!" Ash defended himself. "I just took her back to the hotel because she was really drunk and needed someone to make sure she was safe. But… we did, y'know, kiss a little at the club. But that was it."

Misty was silent. Although she was upset and hurt that Ash would do this, it didn't bother her as much as she would have thought. Oddly, she felt a little relieved. _Maybe this will make it easier to break the news,_ Misty thought. Up until last night, Ash had always been the perfect husband, which always made her feel guilty about secretly being in love with someone else.

She turned to her husband, and he finally looked her in the eye. His eyes were full of shame, regret, and sorrow, and she knew he never intended to hurt her. She could also tell he felt terrible about not checking up on her when she didn't show up for dinner; he'd had no idea she was in trouble.

"Ash, I'm very disappointed that you did what you did last night," she said calmly, and Ash nodded. _Now for the hard part,_ Misty thought reluctantly. "But there is something very important I've been keeping from you. I was waiting for the right time, but after all that's happened… it has to be now."

"I knew there was something you weren't telling me," Ash said, and Misty smiled a little internally at the tiny inflection of triumph in Ash's voice. It was so Ash.

"Well, I don't know how to put this gently, but… Cameron is not your daughter," said Misty, her heart rate increasing as she anticipated Ash's response.

He stood up. "I _knew_ it!" He exclaimed, grinning that he had been right. Then, when he considered the connotations of what Misty had just revealed, his smile faded. "But… if I'm not the father… then who is?" He sat down again.

Misty sighed. "Ash," she said seriously, resting her hand on his shoulder. "I have known this for years, but I haven't told you because I thought you would freak out. This is going to sound really, really weird, but please try to stay calm when you hear this, so we can talk about it like adults. I will explain everything."

Ash looked at Misty solemnly. He took a deep breath. "Okay," he said, "just tell me. I can handle it."

"Okay," Misty tried to calm herself down. She felt like she was going to hyperventilate. "Ash… Mewtwo is the father."

Just as Misty had feared, Ash leapt out of his seat and yelled at the top of his lungs, "_WHAT?!"_


	14. Grow up

Author's Note:

The final chapter! I never thought this day would come... *sobs* (I kid, I kid). Thank you to **PikaMewGirl**, **ElvisStitch**,** StarWriterWG, **and **Charzard0312 **for your kind reviews. Anyway, after realizing how much more in depth and well written this story turned out to be compared to "Human", I went back and revised that one yet again. It is essentially the same story, with some added scenes and some scenes removed, but it is incontestably better. It's your choice whether you want to check it out again. Anyway... enjoy the conclusion to part II of this trilogy!

~TheFrogFromHell

**Chapter 14**

Ash backed away, horrified.

"Ash, it's not like what you're picturing," Misty said desperately, trying to explain herself, "Mewtwo has… special abilities…"

"_Special _abilities?" Ash spat sarcastically, "like impregnating my wife?!"

"That came out wrong…"

"I sure _hope_ it came out wrong!" yelled Ash, "In, fact, I hope everything you just told me came out wrong. Mewtwo… Mewtwo is a _pokemon._ That… that's disgusting, Misty!"

Even though Misty had foreseen that Ash would be upset, his words stung.

"Mewtwo's mind is just as human as yours or mine," Misty defended, "he's not like Pikachu."

"Funny you mention Pikachu," Ash snapped, "is _Pikachu_ going to be the father of our next child?"

Tears sprung to Misty's eyes. "Shut up, Ash!" she cried, "stop being so cruel! If you'd only let me explain things to you…"

"I think you've explained enough," Ash said coolly. "This is what I know: number one, when I met Mewtwo, he was a psychopathic, evil superclone that wanted to destroy us and our pokemon. Number two, somehow you…" Ash paused as he shuddered in revulsion, "…you not only became close with said superclone after that, but you… you… had _sex_ with it?"

"Ash, I'm trying to tell you, it's _not _like what you're picturing—" Ash ignored her comment entirely.

"And number three," he continued, furiously, "you lie to me for eight years? You keep this… repulsive, twisted secret from me? How could you, Misty? After all we've been through together?"

A steady stream of tears now flowed from Misty's eyes. "Ash… I'm sorry…"

"I don't care," Ash said, finally calming down. He faced away from Misty, and he held up his hands as if in defeat. "I don't care if you're sorry. There is nothing you can say that will change my mind about this."

He turned around again, looking at Misty as if she repelled him.

"I'm not going to tell anyone about this," Ash said matter-of-factly, "but I can't be together with you anymore. This has to end. We're getting a divorce."

Misty stood up. "Please, Ash," she begged, "There's something you have to know. Mewtwo—"

Ash cut her off. "Don't," he said, and for the first time, Misty could hear the deep pain and sadness in his voice, "I don't ever want to hear about Mewtwo again. Ever."

Misty nodded. She had lost the battle. There was nothing she could do but allow Ash to make his own choices.

"Misty… I'm going to pack my stuff, and then I'm leaving. I'm going to live at the Pokemon League for a while. But please don't try to contact me. Just leave me alone."

Misty sobbed, and wiped her tears away with her hands.

"If our daughter…" Ash choked, "if _your_ daughter wants to know what happened to me…" he thought for a moment, "just tell her… I left on a journey. Tell her I love her."

"Ash… of course I will," Misty said. She wanted to reach out and comfort him, but she stopped herself, realizing that he would not welcome the gesture.

….

Cameron was awakened by the raised voices of her parents downstairs.

"You lie to me for eight years? You keep this… repulsive, twisted secret from me? How could you, Misty? After all we've been through together?" Her father roared at her mother, who was sobbing loudly enough for Cameron to hear.

"Ash… I'm sorry…" her mother's voice was softer, and it was harder for Cameron to understand what she said. Cameron's psychic senses were overwhelmed by her parents' powerful emotions— anger and disgust from her father, and remorse, shame, and grief from her mother.

Cameron didn't want to hear any more, in her ears or in her mind. She shut the voices out as much as she could, frightened and alone. She wished she had a friend, a companion to distract her.

She noticed the pokeball sitting on her nightstand and it gave her an idea. While she and her mother had been at the Pokemon Center, Cameron had snuck it in with another trainer's pokemon to be healed, and then she stealthily retrieved it from the healing machine before she left. _Mew,_ she thought, _Mew can be my friend._

She released the small catlike pokemon from its confines. It looked around, disoriented, until its eyes fell on her.

_Hello,_ she heard in her mind,_ I do not recognize this place. Is this a lab?_

Cameron giggled. _No, silly,_ she communicated back, _this is my bedroom._

_What is a bedroom?_

Cameron couldn't stop laughing. Mew was so funny! _It is a room, with a bed in it._ She anticipated Mew's next question and decided to elaborate. _A bed is where a person sleeps._

_Oh, _projected Mew, seeming a little disheartened. _I guess I have a lot to learn._

_It's okay,_ Cameron reassured it, _I'm still learning, too._

_What do you have to learn? You know everything already._

_No I don't,_ Cameron replied, _I'm just a kid. I'll learn more as I grow up._

_Grow up… _Mew considered the phrase, _maybe I need to grow up, too. Maybe I am a kid, like you._

Cameron considered this, and thought about Mewtwo. He was a pokemon, but also a man. _Maybe,_ she replied.

….

That night, Misty lay in bed alone. She was enveloped by the sensation of emptiness, and, although it was unpleasant, she knew that feeling any other way at that moment would have been wrong.

Even though her feelings for Ash had changed and faded over the years, she still missed feeling the warmth of his body next to hers. His presence had always been comforting to her; whenever she was in the midst of life's most trying obstacles, he had always been her confidant, her anchor. In a way, she still loved him.

She closed her eyes and lay still but could not sleep.

She sensed a presence outside her window. Although she saw only the night sky outside and heard only the chirps of crickets and the whooshes of cars passing by, she just knew something— or someone— was there.

She made her way across the room, her steps light and silent on the carpet. She opened the window and peered down towards the grass below. There, gazing up at her in his original form, was Mewtwo.

Though she had only seen Mewtwo in human form as of late, she was no longer frightened by his true appearance at all. Instead, she was calmed by his presence. In her mind, she formulated a thought and pushed it to the surface of her awareness. _Come in._

…

Responsive to her invitation, Mewtwo gracefully lifted off the ground and ascended upwards, meeting his loved one where she stood. At this moment, he was eternally grateful that his powers had fully returned after being healed at the Pokemon Center. Studying Misty, he marveled at how small she was. His tall body would tower over hers had he not been hovering at a height that put them face to face.

Misty smiled and took a few steps backwards so that Mewtwo could enter through the wide window. He effortlessly glided into the room, touching down softly in front of her.

_I am sorry,_ Mewtwo communicated telepathically to her.

"For what?" Misty asked, furrowing her brow.

_It is my fault you were in danger,_ he explained. Misty shook her head.

"You had no way of knowing that," she said, "it was… shocking, what Giovanni was able to do. I had no idea either." Mewtwo's expression darkened at the mention of Giovanni.

_Is he still alive?_ Mewtwo projected.

Misty nodded grudgingly.

Mewtwo paused, considering this piece of information. _Then I will do everything in my power to protect you._

Misty kissed him then, pulling him closer to her. Although Mewtwo internally welcomed her advances, he was perplexed, and he hesitated to respond.

Misty broke the kiss. In her eyes, Mewtwo saw hurt and uncertainty.

_You behave as if you are attracted to me,_ communicated Mewtwo, _yet I remain in my true form._

Misty shook her head. "Mewtwo," Misty said, "my loving you never had anything to do with what you looked like. I mean, it's true that… in this form, anyway, we're not fully… _compatible_," she blushed when she said that part, "but I cared more about what was inside you, and I knew that underneath all your anger and pain, there was a good person… and that's who I loved. Who I still love."

Mewtwo was immensely relieved, but he didn't understand. _But… I believed with such certainty… that you never would have behaved in such a way on the island had I not assumed Ash's form. That is the true reason I abandoned you eight years ago. And for that, I am sorry._

"_That_ was the reason you left?" Misty was shocked, "I thought it was because of me… I thought I disgusted you because I was human."

Mewtwo remembered his harsh words and regretted them immensely.

_Misty… you could never disgust me. I always have, and always will, find you beautiful._

The two kissed again, this time more passionately, and Mewtwo was pleased to find he still remembered how to make Misty melt under his touch. _Incredible, _he thought.

Abruptly, Misty broke away, though Mewtwo sensed she was reluctant to.

"Mewtwo… I do want to…" Misty said, playing with her hair anxiously, "but not tonight. Not here… it's too soon."

_Yes, _Mewtwo thought, _this is the room that Misty and Ash shared._

Although he still had trouble fully comprehending her emotional reaction, he could feel that she was somewhat conflicted and distressed about Ash's departure.

"Just… stay with me tonight?" Misty requested. Mewtwo was very content to.

With his arms around her, Mewtwo watched Misty as she slept, and, for the first time, he felt as if he belonged somewhere.

….

Author's Note: That is the end of this installment! It was a pleasure writing this, although now I need to catch up on some much needed nutrition and sleep (I sacrifice myself for my art, okay?). Anyway, look for the third installment coming soon, which will be written and posted a lot more slowly (I am returning to work and school soon, so I am going to aim for 1 chapter a week. Like a TV series!). It will be titled "Hybrid" and will feature an older Cameron as the main character.

Thanks for reading, and please REVIEW! :-)

~TheFrogFromHell


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